Here Is Bin Salman’s 'Black Record' in Kidnappings

Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman still plays a major role in Yemen politics; his latest controversial act was what he did to Yemeni President Abdrabbuh Mansur Hadi after news circulated about his detention and forcing him to step down.

Hadi was not the first to be kidnapped, and he will not be the last, in light of bin Salman's policy of surprising opponents and forcing them to obey his orders, despite their international and political importance.

Outside Saudi Arabia, bin Salman detained prominent leaders of many countries, the most famous of whom was former Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri, and inside, he put most members of the royal family in prison after a shocking security operation known as the Ritz-Carlton arrests.

Questions remain about the nature of Mohammed bin Salman's adventures, and his unprecedented actions in international protocols.

 

Hadi's Detention

Years ago, Riyadh entered with its striking force in Yemen after the revolution, or what is known as the revolution of February 11, 2011.

The intervention reached its peak when Saudi Arabia announced Operation Decisive Storm, under the pretext of supporting the legitimate regime led by Mansur Hadi, and protecting it from the coup of the Iranian-backed Houthi militia.

However, the military operations resulted in widespread violations of human rights, drew international condemnation, and did not succeed in stopping the militia.

In light of the tense situation and the outbreak of the Yemeni crisis, The Wall Street Journal revealed shocking facts, especially about the detention of the Yemeni president by the Saudi Crown Prince.

The newspaper said on April 18, 2022, that Mohammed bin Salman pushed Abdrabbuh Mansur Hadi to step down earlier that month.

It added: "The Saudi security services forcibly detained him at his home in Riyadh, and restricted all communications,” confirming that, "Prince Mohammed told Hadi that other Yemeni leaders agreed that it was time to relinquish power."

The American newspaper also indicated that Saudi officials, while trying to get Hadi to relinquish power, threatened to announce what they said was evidence of corruption committed by the Yemeni president during his rule.

It quoted a Saudi official as saying that "Hadi is actually under house arrest in his residence in Riyadh, without access to phones.”

This came after Hadi handed over power on April 7 to a presidential council of 8 representatives from different Yemeni groups, in the latest development of the 7-year civil war in Yemen, which has caused a humanitarian crisis and affected the kingdom's relations with Washington.

Speaking to Al-Estiklal about the kidnapping policy adopted by Mohammed bin Salman, and what he did with the Yemeni president, Yemeni political analyst Yassin al-Tamimi said: "All these mentalities represent tools of demolition for countries and nations, the leader and the conspirator are all in one basket, but Yemen paid the price of these absurd policies.”

He added: "It was the Yemeni president who allowed this from the beginning when he fell into the arms of Riyadh, and it was expected that a coup would take place for several reasons."

On top of that, the Saudi administration and the Crown Prince involved in an unbridled war in Yemen were keen to delegitimize the Yemeni February Revolution, completely get rid of its legitimacy, and the legitimacy of all those who represent it, headed by Mansur Hadi.”

Al-Tamimi stated that despite ben Salman's crimes, and his involvement in the kidnapping, Hadi's exclusion from the scene may have a positive effect in creating more consensus within the Yemeni Presidential Leadership Council.”

 

Hariri and bin Turki

Abdrabbuh followed the footsteps of Hariri. History won’t forget what the Saudi crown prince did to the former prime minister of Lebanon, who was also a leader of the Sunni movement in his country.

According to the Lebanese newspaper, Al-Akhbar, “all the tragic incidents start from this (crazy) day, as mentioned in its detailed report on the kidnapping al-Hariri and his detention in the Ritz-Carlton Hotel on November 4, 2017.

On November 11, 2017, Reuters published a detailed report on the incidents of the kidnapping, saying that "since the arrival of Saad Hariri's plane in Saudi Arabia, a surprise was waiting for him.”

It added that there were no Saudi princes or government officials, as the protocol goes, according to high-level sources close to Hariri.

Reuters stated that “his mobile phone was confiscated, and on the second day Hariri was forced to read out his resignation as prime minister in a statement broadcast by a Saudi-owned TV channel.”

It was strange for a prime minister to appear on a television owned by a foreign country, and from a foreign land (Saudi Arabia) to announce his resignation.

This crisis plunged Lebanon into a dark tunnel to become a country without a government or leadership.

The situation of Saudi princes, who were against MBS’s system, was not better than the previous kidnapped leaders; however, it was worse and more severe.

On August 25, 2020, Vanity Fair revealed that bin Salman had kidnapped Prince Sultan bin Turki, one of the Saudi princes residing in Europe since 2015; the reason was sending messages criticizing King Salman and his crown prince, accusing them of corruption.

The magazine revealed shocking details about the kidnapping, saying: "A special security squad affiliated with the Crown Prince, led by his (notorious) adviser, Saud al-Qahtani, kidnapped Prince Sultan and took him to Riyadh, and since that day no one has heard of him.”

It stated that the Saudi prince, who was residing in Europe, received a message from his father to visit him in Cairo, and that a plane was sent to take him there and the crew of the plane was about 19 people, double the usual number.

The magazine reported that despite the entourage’s warnings to the prince, he insisted on boarding the plane to see his father, but after two hours the flight was changed, and the crew claimed that there was a technical problem; a few hours later, the Riyadh towers appeared, and the prince found himself in the Saudi capital.

According to the report, "the prince was taken to an unknown underground basement. As for the courtiers, they were interrogated, and threatened;” some of them were given money to keep the unfortunate incident a secret.

 

The Ritz Nights

As for the cruelest incident in the history of bin Salman about kidnapping and detention, it was what happened in early November 2017.

MBS launched a fierce campaign against nearly 400 of the most powerful figures in the country, including princes from the ruling family, senior businessmen, and ministers, and they were all detained in the Ritz-Carlton hotel in the Saudi capital, Riyadh.

It is the largest and most controversial security operation in the Kingdom's modern history.

The Guardian described the detention process as “the foundations of Saudi society, in an instant turning untouchable establishment figures into targets for arrest.”

The Guardian said that bin Salman violated laws and “seized assets, destroyed business empires, and tore up the traditional agreement between the state and the influential elite overnight."

It also revealed that princes and senior statesmen were subjected to torture, as they were blindfolded, beaten, and intimidated by security officers under the supervision of two ministers, both of whom are close to the man who ordered the purge, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.

Many of them were stripped of their wealth as a result of torture and coercion, according to the report.

Among the most prominent detainees of the Ritz, were Prince Mutaib bin Abdullah, and his brother Prince Turki, the sons of the late Saudi King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz, as well as the famous businessman Prince al-Waleed bin Talal, the former chief of the royal court Khaled al-Tuwaijri, and businessman Saleh Kamel.

The Guardian said it was about consolidating the authority of Mohammed bin Salman in a clear and simple way, noting that this came before the assassination of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi.

It stressed that the impunity encouraged Mohammed bin Salman to order the assassination of Khashoggi, as the guards involved in the Ritz operation were the same who killed him.

The late Saudi writer Jamal Khashoggi was the author of the most amazing tragic story of bin Salman's dramatic operations.