| Summary/Abstract |
Saudi Arabia's King Abdullah died the night of January 23, 2015. The king, who was 91, had ruled the kingdom for two decades. After then-King Fahd suffered a stroke in 1995, Abdullah became the country's de facto ruler, and Abdullah was formally appointed king when his predecessor died in 2005. Ten years later, shrouded in a simple white cloth, King Abdullah was buried in an unmarked grave the same day he died—in line with Wahhabi Islamic teachings. The same day, Abdullah's half-brother Salman became the new king, and named his own brother, Muqrin, crown prince and his nephew, Muhammad bin Nayef, deputy crown prince. Later that spring, in April, Muqrin was replaced by Muhammad bin Nayef as crown prince. Meanwhile, the king's young son, Muhammad bin Salman, was appointed new deputy crown prince.
|