King Abdullah

Saudi King Abdullah bin Abdul Aziz al Saud took power at the beginning of 1996, after his half-brother, King Fahd, suffered a massive stroke. Abdullah acted as regent for his brother for nine years.

Fahd died in 2005, and Abdullah has ruled in his own right ever since.

During his reign, a growing chasm has opened in Saudi Arabia between conservative Salafi (Wahhabi) forces and modernizers. The King himself seems to be relatively moderate, but he hasn't made many substantive reforms. In fact, Abdullah's tenure has included some atrocious human rights violations in Saudi Arabia.

Who is the king, and what does he believe?

Early Life:

Little is known about King Abdullah's childhood. He was born in Riyahd in 1924, the fifth son of Saudi Arabia's founding king, Abdul-aziz bin Abdulrahman Al Saud (known as "Ibn Saud"). Abdullah's mother, Fahda bint Asi Al Shuraim, was Ibn Saud's eighth wife of twelve. Abdullah has between fifty and sixty siblings.

At the time of Abdullah's birth, his father was Amir Abdul-aziz, and his realm included only the northern and eastern sections of Arabia. The Amir conquered Sharif Hussein of Mecca in 1928 and declared himself King. The royal family was quite poor until about 1940, when Saudi oil revenues began to flow.

Education:

Details of Abdullah's education are sparse, but the official Saudi Information Directory states that he had "a formal religious education." According to the Directory, Abdullah supplemented his formal schooling with extensive reading. He also spent a long stint living with the desertBedouin people in order to learn traditional Arab values.

Early Career:

In August of 1962, Prince Abdullah was appointed to lead the Saudi Arabian National Guard. The National Guard's duties include providing security for the royal family, preventing coups, and guarding the Muslim Holy Cities of Mecca and Medina. The force includes a standing army of 125,000 men, plus a tribal militia of 25,000.

King Abdullah still commands the National Guard, which is composed of the descendents of his father's original clan.

Entry into Politics:

March of 1975 saw Abdullah's half-brother Khalid succeed to the throne upon the assassination of another half-brother, King Faisal. King Khalid appointed Prince Abdullah Second Deputy Prime Minister.

In 1982, the throne passed to King Fahd after Khalid's death and Prince Abdullah was promoted once more, this time to Deputy Prime Minister. He presided over meetings of the king's cabinet in that role. King Fahd also officially named Abdullah the Crown Prince, next in line to the throne.

Rule as Regent:

In December of 1995, King Fahd had a series of strokes that left him more-or-less incapacitated. For the next nine years, Crown Prince Abdullah acted as regent for his brother, although Fahd and his cronies still wielded considerable influence over policy.

King Fahd died on August 1, 2005, and Crown Prince Abdullah became king, taking power in name as well as in practice.

Rule in His Own Right:

King Abdullah inherited a nation torn between fundamentalist Islamists and modernizing reformers.

The fundamentalists sometimes use terrorist acts (such as bombing and kidnapping) to express their anger over issues like the stationing of American troops on Saudi soil. The modernizers increasingly use blogs and international pressure groups to call for increased women's rights, reform of Sharia-based laws, and greater press and religious freedoms.

Abdullah has cracked down on the Islamists, but hasn't made the significant reforms for which many observers both inside and outside of Saudi Arabia had hoped.

Foreign Policy:

King Abdullah has been known throughout his career as a staunch Arab nationalist, yet he has reached out to other countries.

The king has tried recently to revive interest in his 2002 Middle East Peace Plan. It received renewed attention in 2005, but has yet to be implemented. The plan calls for a return to the pre-1967 borders and a right of return for Palestinian refugees. In return, Israel would control the Western Wall and some of the West Bank, and receive recognition from Arab states.

To placate Saudi Islamists, the king has continued to disallow U.S. Iraq War forces to use bases in Saudi Arabia.

Personal Life:

The octogenarian King Abdullah has had more than thirty wives, and has fathered at least thirty-five children.

According to the Saudi Embassy's Official Biography of the King, he breeds Arabian horses, and founded the Riyadh Equestrian Club. He also loves to read, and has established libraries in Riyadh and Casablanca, Morocco.

The King has a personal fortune estimated at $19 billion US, making him among the top 5richest royals in the world.

King Abdullah is considered one of Asia's Five Worst Dictators, based upon his autocratic rule and the denial of human rights in Saudi Arabia.