King Salman assumes the throne at a difficult
time for Saudi Arabia. Having defeated an
Islamist insurgency 10 years ago, the country now
finds itself sandwiched between the growing
threats from al-Qaeda in Yemen to the south and
Islamic State to the north. Both groups have their
sympathisers inside Saudi Arabia.
This is how The New York Times described the
new king:
The new king of Saudi Arabia, Salman bin
Abdul-Aziz Al Saud, has spent more than
a half-century among the top echelons of
one of the world’s most powerful families
and is known to serve as mediator and
peacekeeper between its often competing
factions.
Best known for overseeing the
development of the Saudi capital, Riyadh,
during his nearly 50 years as its governor,
he became the country’s defense minister
in 2011 as a series of uprisings were
shaking Arab leaders who had long been
Saudi allies.
While Salman is popular inside the
kingdom and in the ruling family, he
ascended the throne after the death of
his brother Abdullah on Friday amid
increasing strains on the kingdom.
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