Abdulaziz Bin Nayef — Saudi Minister Imprisoned Princes, Preachers, and Leads Campaigns of Torture

Al-Estiklal Arabic — At the end of March 2023, the name of the Minister of Interior in Saudi Arabia, Prince Abdulaziz bin Saud bin Nayef, was widely circulated.

The primary reason was the announcement of Colonel Rabih al-Enzi’s resignation on March 7, 2023, who belonged to the General Security apparatus, a part of the Ministry of Interior.

His announcement led to discussions about the level of satisfaction or anger among the officers under Prince Abdulaziz.

In early March 2023, the spotlight was on the Minister of Interior after the grand reception he received during his visit to Tunisia. So much so that the Tunisian President, Kais Saied, received him himself and opened the doors of the Carthage Palace for him, prompting questions about the kingdom’s rising regional security role.

Since assuming the position of Crown Prince in 2017, Mohammed bin Salman has carried out a major overhaul of the structure of the Saudi government, eliminating both existing and potential competitors and undermining all centers of power that could cause him trouble.

Meanwhile, bin Salman has relied on powerful men, one of whom is the Minister of Interior, Abdulaziz bin Saud, who is strongly loyal to the Crown Prince.

The rise of the minister and his progression to important positions coincided with the rise of bin Salman. The latter has found in Abdulaziz the qualities he was looking for: fierce performance and obedience.

Within a few years, the Minister of Interior, Abdulaziz bin Saud, had become a figure of authority, repression, extensive detention campaigns, and infamous prisons.

Every security violation committed by the Crown Prince was often behind the orders of Abdulaziz bin Saud, whose calm and appearance did not match his violent commands.

 

The Youngest Interior Minister

His full name is Abdulaziz bin Saud bin Nayef bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, born on November 4, 1983. His father is the former governor of the Eastern Province, Saud bin Nayef, and his grandfather is Prince Nayef bin Abdulaziz, who was also Minister of Interior and Crown Prince until his death on June 16, 2012.

Abdulaziz is considered the oldest grandson of Prince Nayef, which gives him a special status within the Saudi royal family.

He is married to Princess Moudi, daughter of Ahmed bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, the former Minister of Interior and one of the youngest sons of the founder of the Saudi state, King Abdulaziz, from his wife Princess Hassa bint Ahmed al-Sudairi.

This makes him one of the Seven Sudairis, those who hold the most power within the Al Saud family, including the current King Salman bin Abdulaziz.

Prince Abdulaziz bin Saud received his primary education at the al-Zahra Private School in Dammam and then studied law at King Saud University in Riyadh.

After graduating, Abdulaziz worked in the private sector for several years before being appointed as a member of the High Committee for the Nayef bin Abdulaziz Prize for the Prophet’s Sunnah upon the late Prince Nayef’s mandate. Later, he became a member of the scientific committee of the award. These were honorary positions for a young man, while Abdulaziz’s real breakthrough came with the ascension of King Salman bin Abdulaziz to power in 2015.

Abdulaziz was appointed as an advisor to the royal court, and during that time, he also worked in the rights management and systems administration departments, then in the General Directorate of Borders in the royal court, in addition to the Advisory Unit.

He then moved to work for 6 months in the political department of the royal court and also worked as an advisor in the office of the Saudi Defense Minister.

On May 16, 2016, a royal decree was issued appointing Abdulaziz bin Saud as an advisor to the Minister of Interior. It was a qualitative leap for the young prince, who seemed to play a significant role in the future, especially as the kingdom was entering a phase of comprehensive changes in administration, governance, as well as cultural and social levels.

The turning point in Abdulaziz’s rise story was the fierce struggle between Mohammed bin Salman and his cousin Prince Mohammed bin Nayef bin Abdulaziz, who was the minister of interior and crown prince of the kingdom at that time, and one of the most powerful men in the country.

The turmoil continued between the two men until bin Salman was able to settle the matter. He overthrew bin Nayef, detained him inside his palace in the coastal city of Jeddah, and put him under house arrest.

On the next day, June 21, 2017, bin Salman relieved him of all his positions, including the crown prince and the Ministry of Interior, and appointed Abdulaziz bin Saud bin Nayef instead, who was 34 years old at the time, to become the youngest interior minister in the country’s history.

The appointment of Abdulaziz as a replacement for Nayef was another stage, as King Salman and his son Mohammed sought to reassure members of the ruling family in Saudi Arabia by keeping the security file in the hands of Nayef’s branch of the family.

 

The Other Face

After Mohammed bin Salman became the Crown Prince and all country issues were in his hands, he became effectively in control of various matters and began his repressive campaign that relied on several axes, relying on a group of people, including the new Interior Minister.

His first action was manifested on November 4, 2017, when he ordered the arrest of nearly 400 of the most powerful figures in the kingdom, including princes, top businessmen, and ministers, and they were all detained in the Ritz-Carlton hotel in the capital, Riyadh.

This event became known as the largest and most controversial purge in the country’s modern history.

Some of the most prominent detainees included Prince Mutaib bin Abdullah (son of the late King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz), the famous businessman Prince al-Waleed bin Talal, Prince Turki bin Abdullah, and Prince Turki bin Nasser.

Still, among the important figures was Bakr bin Laden, the head of the Bin Laden Group, which is one of the largest contracting companies in the Arab world.

Former Royal Court Chief Khaled al-Tuwaijri and the head of MBC Saudi Arabia Waleed al-Ibrahim were also arrested.

On November 19, 2020, The Guardian published an exclusive report on what happened that night and what the security forces did to the detainees.

“On the first night, everyone was blindfolded, and nearly everyone was subjected to what Egyptian intelligence calls the ‘night of the beating,’” said a source with intimate knowledge of what took place. “People were asked if they knew why they were there. No one did. Most were beaten, some of them badly. There were people tied to the walls in stressful positions. It went on for hours, and all of those doing the torturing were Saudis.

“It was designed to soften them up. And then the next day, the interrogators arrived.”

According to The Guardian, “the former detainees, many of whom were stripped of fortunes, portray a scene of torture and coercion, and of royal court advisers leading chaotic attempts to understand the investments behind the wealth of the kingdom’s most influential families, then seizing what they could find.”

The Minister of Interior also participated in the campaign launched by Prince Salman in September 2017 to strike the Sahwa movement and limit the role of Saudi preachers and scholars. This became evident when Abdulaziz bin Saud and his forces moved to torment academics, thinkers, preachers, reformers, and activists, arresting them for their opinions opposing the authorities.

The campaign began with the arrest of preacher Salman al-Ouda after he called for reconciliation between Gulf leaders following the blockade of Qatar in June 2017, followed by Sheikh Awad al-Qarni. The aggressive campaign intensified to include prominent Islamic figures such as academic Abdulaziz al-Fawzan from the Higher Institute of Judiciary, Sheikh Safar al-Hawali, and others.

These scholars were subjected to brutal persecution, oppression, and torture inside Saudi prisons, in addition to demands from the Saudi public prosecutor’s office to execute them. In this way, the Minister of Interior, Abdulaziz bin Saud bin Nayef, was one of the oppressive arms of Mohammed bin Salman.