Saudi king’s demise will affect entire Middle East: Expert
A political analyst tells Press TV that the Saudi king’s possible demise will not only affect Saudi Arabia but also the entire Middle East region.
Reports indicate that King Abdullah bin Abdul Aziz has slipped into a coma and is now clinically dead nearly one week after a 14-hour-long back surgery in a Riyadh hospital.
Press TV has conducted an interview with Qassim al-Hashemi, Middle East expert, to further discuss the issue. What follows is an approximate transcription of the interview.
Press TV: Of course when it comes to the health of the Saudi king the issue of succession comes up and how his possible death or passing away basically is going to affect the situation not just in Saudi Arabia but also in the region?
Al-Hashemi: It will affect as you say not only the internal in Saudi Arabia but the …[entire] Middle East. Do not forget that Saudi Arabia has got more than one hand, I mean hands in Bahrain, others in Kuwait, the other in Syria, there is hands in Yemen, their hands are very clear in the United Arab Emirates as well, so they are all over.
The previous old generation of the Saudi royal member has a special system which this system does not suit the new generation coming to take over and that is why this new generation now, all of them, each of them is ready to jump to the …[throne].
These hands look like they are getting weak now and they need them to be more internally in Saudi Arabia rather than keeping them away making the center of Saudi Arabia is weaker. Keeping one hand in Bahrain for example and the other in Syria, the other in Jordan, that makes the Saudi power strong and the middle of Saudi Arabia especially in Riyadh is very weak and that could affect the people whom they are looking to jump over the …[throne]of governing Saudi Arabia especially by Naif sons.
But also do not forget that taking also their hands from those areas such as Bahrain, Yemen and Syria will also open the door of the fire onto them and they are in fact in between two threats. Do they lose I mean take their hands from those areas and open the door of hell on them or do they keep their hands and keep the center of Saudi weak? In this case no one knows who is going to jump on the [throne].
