The following facts cast doubt on all the claims of the Saudi family and refute all the false claims made by the hypocrites who sold themselves to this family and distorted the real history of the Saudi family; I mean journalists and historians who, due to large funding, have a false and altered genealogy of this family, and that supposedly our greatest Prophet Muhammad (DBAR) said that the Saudis are evidence of the power of Allah on Earth. And it is quite clear that this flattery is intended to justify that crime and autocracy of the Saudis and that it guarantees the stability of their rule and is the basis of their despotic regime, which is a dictatorship of the extreme form and completely compromises our great religion Islam.
The very concept of monarchy is unacceptable in our religion of Islam, in the Holy Quran, because it contains power in one person and in his family members, overwhelming the people and drowning out the voices of any "opposition" that opposes royal despotism and dictatorial rules. And the kings are condemned in the following verse of the Holy Quran: “Kings, entering a (foreign) country, destroy it and ruin it, and deprive the noblest of its inhabitants of respect and honor, so do (all) kings” (Sura an-Naml, 27 Meccan , ayat 34. Quran Translation of Meanings and Commentary by Imam Valery Porokhov).
Despite this, the Saudi family ignores the Qur'anic verses and falsely claims that they are the strictest adherents of the Holy Qur'an: under their strict supervision, radio and television programs are aired, where they use the Qur'anic verses to protect their system. At the same time, it is strictly forbidden to publish other verses in the press, because printing and reading them may affect their throne!
Who are the Saudis? Where are they from? What is their ultimate goal?
Members of the Ibn Saud family are well aware that Muslims around the world know their Jewish origin. Muslims know all their bloody deeds in the past and ruthless, despotic cruelty in the present. At present, they are trying in every possible way to hide their Jewish origin and, hiding behind the religion of Islam, they begin to invent their genealogy, trying to bring it to our most precious Prophet Muhammad (DBAR)
They completely forget or ignore in every possible way the fact that Islam has never attached importance to genealogy or the "Family Tree"; here respect and honor are paid to all people without exception, if their actions comply with the principles proclaimed in the following verse of the Holy Quran: “O people! We created you from (a couple): a man and a wife, and created from you (family) clans and (different) peoples, so that you could know each other. Indeed, before Allah, the most honored is the one who becomes the most righteous of all of you. Indeed, Allah is all-knowing and knows everything and everything! (Sura al-Khujurat, 49, Medina, ayat 13).
Anyone who is unjust and greedy cannot be close to our Prophet Muhammad (DBAR), even if he is a close relative of him. Bilal, an Abyssinian slave who was a true Muslim, has much more respect in Islam than the pagan Abu Lahab, who was a blood relative (uncle) of our Prophet (DBAR). There is no preference for people in Islam. Allah gives the degrees of comparison in Islam according to the piety of a person, and not his origin or belonging to any dynasty.
Who is the real founder of the Saudi dynasty?
In 851 Hijri, a group of people from the al-Masalih clan, which is a clan of the Anza tribe, equip a caravan to purchase grain (wheat) and other food products from Iraq and transport them to Nejd. The leader of the caravan was a man named Sahmi bin Haslul. The caravan arrived in Basra, where the caravaners went to a grain merchant, a Jew named Mordachai bin Ibrahim bin Moshe. During the negotiations, the Jew asked them: "Where are you from?" They replied: "From the tribe of Anza from the clan of al-Masaleh." Hearing this, the Jew began to warmly hug each of those who came, saying that he was also from the al-Masaleh clan, but he lives in Basra because of his father's quarrel with some members of the Anza tribe.
After he told the story he had made up, he ordered his servants to load the camels with food in a much larger volume; this act seemed so generous that the representatives of the al-Masaleh family were very surprised and they were overcome with pride for their relative, who managed to become a successful merchant in Iraq; they believed his every word and agreed with him, because he was a very rich grain merchant, which they needed so much (this is how the Jew began to call himself a representative of the Arab clan al-Masaleh)
When the caravan was ready to depart, the Jew asked to take it with him, because he really wants to visit his homeland Nejd. Hearing his request, the caravaners gladly agreed to take him with them.
Thus the Jew reached Nejd in secret. In Nejd, through his supporters, whom he passed off as his relatives, he began to diligently propagate himself. But, unexpectedly, he faced opposition from supporters of the Muslim preacher of the locality al-Qasim, Sheikh Salih Salman Abdullah at-Tamimi. A Jew (the true ancestor of the ibn Saud family) preached in the territories of Najd, Yemen and Hijaz, having gone from al-Qasim to al-Isha, on the way to al-Qatif he changed his name from Mordakhai to Marwan bin Diriyah and began to invent stories about the shield of our Prophet Muhammad (DBAR), that it was obtained as a trophy from an Arab pagan during the battle of Uhud between Arab pagans and Muslims. He said that "this shield was sold by an Arab pagan to the Jewish tribe of Banu Kunayka, who kept it as a treasure." Gradually, by telling such stories to the Bedouins, he raised the authority of the Jewish tribes as very influential. He decided to permanently settle in the town of Diriyah in the area of al-Katif, which he considered as the basis, a springboard for the creation of a Jewish state in Arabia.
To achieve such ambitious plans, he became very close to the Bedouins and in the end he declared himself their ruler!
At the same time, the Azhaman tribe, in alliance with the Banu Khalid tribe, having understood its essence and that the insidious plan drawn up by this Jew was beginning to give results, decided to destroy it. They attacked his city and captured it, but could not capture the Jew, who had taken refuge from the enemies.
This Jewish ancestor of the Saudi dynasty, Mordachai, hid in a farm that was then called al-Malibed-Usayba near al-Arid, the current name of this area is ar-Riyad
He asked for asylum from the owner of this land. The host was a very hospitable person and allowed the Jew to stay. Less than a month later, the Jew killed all the members of the farm owner's family, hiding the traces of his crimes and showing as if the thieves who had entered here had destroyed the family. He then announced that he bought these lands before the death of the former owner and remained there to live. He renamed the area, giving it the name - ad-Diriya, as well as the area that he had lost.
This Jewish ancestor (Mordakhai) of the Ibn Saud dynasty built a guest house called "Madafa" on the lands of his victims and gathered around him a group of his henchmen, the most hypocritical people who began to stubbornly say that he was a prominent Arab leader. The Jew himself began to weave conspiracies against Sheikh Salih Salman Abdullah at-Tamimi, his true enemy, who was later killed in the mosque of the city of al-Zalafi.
After that, he felt safe and made ad-Diriya his permanent place of residence. He had a lot of wives who gave him a huge number of children. He gave all his children Arabic names.
Since that time, the number of his descendants has increased, which made it possible to create a large Saudi clan, following his path, controlling the Arab tribes and clans. They ruthlessly took away agricultural land, and physically eliminated the recalcitrant. They used all kinds of deception, deceit to achieve their goals, they offered their women, money, in order to attract as many people as possible to their side. They were especially zealous with historians and writers to forever obscure their Jewish origin and connect it with the original Arab tribes of Rabia, Anza and al-Masaleh.
One of the most famous hypocrites of our time - Muhammad Amin at-Tamimi - Director of the modern Library of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia compiled a genealogical tree for the Jewish family of Saudis and connected them with the Greatest Prophet Muhammad (DBAR). For this fictitious work, he received a reward of 35 thousand Egyptian pounds from the KSA ambassador in Cairo, Egypt, in 1362 AH - 1943. The ambassador's name is Ibrahim al-Fadel.
As mentioned above, the Jewish ancestor of the Saudis (Mordachai) practiced polygamy, marrying a huge number of Arab women and having as a result of this a large number of children; his descendants are now repeating the actions of their ancestor exactly the same, increasing their power - taking in quantity.
One of the sons of Mordakhai, whose name was al-Marakan, an Arabized form of the Hebrew name Makren, the eldest son was named Muhammad, and the other was called Saud, whose name is now the Saudi dynasty.
The descendants of Saud (the Saudi dynasty) began to kill prominent Arab figures, under the pretext that they had departed from Islam, violated the Qur'anic injunctions and thereby aroused the wrath of the Saudis.
In the Book of History of the Saudi Dynasty on pages 98-101, their family historian claims that the Saudis considered all the inhabitants of Najd to be apostates, so they were allowed to shed their blood, seize property, and the Saudis could turn their women into concubines, like captives. Muslims who did not share the views of the ideologist of the Saudis - Muhammad ibn Abdulvahhab (also has Jewish roots from Turkey) were subject to complete destruction. Under the guise of this, the Saudis killed men, stabbed children, ripped open the wombs of pregnant women, raped, robbed and massacred entire villages. And they took the teachings of the Wahhabis sect as the basis of their cruel program, which allowed them to destroy dissidents.
This disgusting Jewish dynasty in every way patronizes the Wahhabis sect, who allow violence in cities and villages under the guise of Islam. This Jewish dynasty has been doing lawlessness since 1163 Hijri, since they named the Arabian Peninsula after themselves (Saudi Arabia) and consider the entire region their property, and its population are servants and slaves of the dynasty, who must work for the benefit of their owners (the dynasty Saudis).
They have completely appropriated natural resources and consider them their property. If someone asks questions that are uncomfortable for the dynasty or begins to protest against the despotism of the Jewish dynasty, he is publicly cut off his head in the square. The Saudi princess once visited Florida, USA with her courtiers, she rented 90 suites at the Grand Hotel with a total cost of about 1 million US dollars per day. Can the subjects ask what kind of extravagant trick this is? If anyone asks such a question, then he will immediately be overtaken by the punishment of the Saudi sword in the execution square !!!
Witnesses to the Jewish origin of the Saudi dynasty
In the 1960s, the South al-Arab radio station in Cairo, Egypt and the Yemeni radio station in Sana'a confirmed the Jewish origin of the Saudi dynasty on the air.
King Faisal al-Saud at that time could not deny his family's close relationship with the Jews when he stated in an interview with The Washington Post on September 17, 1969: "We, the Saudi dynasty, are relatives (cousins) of the Jews: we do not share the point of view of the Arabs or Muslims in general on the Jewish question... we must live in peace and harmony. Our country (Arabia) is the ancestral home of the first Jew and it was from here that they spread throughout the world.” This was the statement of King Faisal al-Saud bin Abdulaziz!!!
Hafez Wahbi, the Saudi legal adviser, mentioned in his book entitled "The Arabian Peninsula" that King Abdul Aziz al-Saud, who died in 1953, said: "Our activities (Saudi propaganda) came across opposition from all the Arab tribes. My grandfather is Saud al-Awwal once imprisoned several sheikhs of the Maziir tribe, and when another group of the same tribe came to intercede for the prisoners, with a request for release, as Saud al-Awwal ordered his people to cut off the heads of all the prisoners, and invited those who came to taste dishes from the Boiled meat of his victims, whose severed heads he set on the dishes!The petitioners were very frightened and refused to eat the flesh of their relatives, and because of their refusal to eat, he ordered his people to cut off their heads.This heinous crime was committed by order of the Saudi ruler against to people whose only fault was the condemnation of his cruel methods and extreme despotism.
August 30, 2012, 22:09The Saudis, Al Saud (arab. آل سعود) (less often - the Saudis) - the ruling royal dynasty in Saudi Arabia since the formation of the country, which occurred on September 23, 1932. 
Ibn Saud The state was united in 1932 by Abdel-Aziz ibn Saud, who was a noble polygamist and left behind 42 legitimate sons and 125 daughters. Some scholars state that he had 1,400 wives and concubines]. There is hardly a couple of Saudi princes with only 1 wife and 5-6 children. Basically, they have 10-15 wives and 10-35 children. And the total number of the al-Saud family has about 50,000 thousand members. The ruling house of Saudi has always been strongly associated with the founder of Wahhabism - with the religious "reformer" Mohammed Abdul Wahhab (reformers can really only name him in quotation marks, you can google it if you are interested) - he signed an agreement with Mohammed bin Saud in 1744. The Saudi clan, combined with the religious worshipers of Abdul Wahhab, had an explosive effect. The House of Saud received its wealth and power, and the violent Wahhabi figures received state support that would allow them to spread their ideology throughout the world in the coming decades. Wahhabism (followers of Wahhabism call themselves Salafists) is a sectarian movement of Islam that denies innovations in Islam, music is evil for them, they advocate a strict distinction, segregation of men and women and deny any secular power. 
Saudi Arabia before the oil boom, 20th century. The history of the country changed dramatically when, in 1933, King Ibn Saud granted American oil companies a concession to explore and extract oil. It turned out that in the depths of Arabia there are huge reserves of "black gold". In 1938, colossal oil fields were discovered in Saudi Arabia. The king transferred the main rights to develop deposits to the Aramco company. Most of the oil produced went to the United States, and almost all of the proceeds from it went directly to the royal family. However, profits were constantly growing, and the money went to the state treasury. Saudi Arabia quickly became the richest state in the Middle East. The sale of oil made it possible for Abdel Aziz to make a huge fortune, which in 1952 was estimated at 200 million US dollars. Inheritance among the Saudis is not like most dynasties, from father to children, but in most cases from brother to brother, and only then to the eldest of the next generation. The female line is not taken into account. Despite the strict religion, the royal family of Saudi Arabia gives a lot of food to the tabloids and is known for its high-profile scandals: while studying in Beirut as a guy, he was also from Saudi Arabia, they wanted to escape, but they were caught and the guy was executed too. The sad fate of Mishaal was even shone on the film. 
Bin Nasser Saud 2. Saudi prince Saud Abdulaziz bin Nasser Saud killed his servant Bandar Abdulaziz in 2010 in London. Bandar's body, beaten and strangled, was found on February 15 this year at the Landmark Hotel in London's expensive Marylebone area. The murder had a homosexual connotation, according to prosecutor Jonathan Laidlaw, the sexual connotation of the attack on the servant is absolutely obvious, despite the prince's attempts to hide it with all his might. 3.Saudi Princess Basma bint Saud, King Abdullah II's niece and well-known public figure, has long defended women's rights. The princess gave an interview in which she accused the al-Saud royal family of corruption. "Princes and princesses bathe in luxury while 95% of the country's population is starving," the princess said. 4.Saudi Princess Maha al-Sudairi, wife of Interior Minister Prince Nayef, bought $20,000 worth of glass and silverware (in sets of 100) this week. "Lucky" store in New York, on West 34th Street. Why in quotes? Why, last year the same princess was involved in the Paris scandal. The store owner complained to The Times in London at the time: “It seems to us that we are alone fighting the second richest person in Saudi Arabia. It’s strange, in their country they cut off the hand of a thief who stole a piece of chl :), and then she comes to Europe and thinks you can leave without paying." 
Saudi princess and her lover
5
Playboy and model Patrick Ribbsaert attacked his beloved, Saudi princess Sarah al-Amundi (this is a pseudonym, the real name of the princess was not disclosed). The 30-year-old playboy and fortune hunter met the princess while on holiday in Thailand. Their whirlwind romance continued in London, where the princess rented an apartment. The princess's chauffeur, Sarkis Tokatlyan, often drove the couple to prestigious restaurants and nightclubs, and also became an unwitting witness to their quarrels. In a rage, Ribbsaert broke a bottle of cognac and, with a shard in his hand, rushed to the princess. Her chauffeur prevented the princess from being injured. Sargis Tokatlyan rushed to the playboy and shielded the princess with himself. As a result, the driver was seriously injured and had to spend about 4 months in the hospital. At the trial, Ribbsaert energetically denies his guilt and claims that he was defending himself from a "brutal driver". According to the Swedish police, the playboy has already been brought to the police for beating and strangling his ex-girlfriend. And finally, this is how the average Saudi woman "in the light" looks like, and this is how Saudi princesses look like: Princess Amirra, wife of billionaire Prince Al-Walid.
Over the weekend, with the tacit support of President Trump, King Salman of Saudi Arabia, along with his influential son, staged an unprecedented purge within their own family. The main victims were those relatives of the king who controlled the finances, the media and the army. Among the dozens arrested were 11 princes, several current and former officials, owners of three major television channels, the head of the most important military branch and one of the richest people in the world, a major shareholder in Citibank, Twentieth Century Fox, Apple, Twitter and Lyft.
“It's the same as if you woke up one morning and found that Warren Buffett and the heads of ABC, CBS and NBC have been arrested,” a former American official told me. “There are all the signs of a coup d'état. Saudi Arabia is rapidly transforming into another country. This kingdom has never been so unstable."
As a result of this purge, a wave of fear swept through the kingdom - one of the two largest producers and exporters of oil - as well as the Middle East, global financial markets and the international community. On Monday, November 6, the arrests continued, and there is no word yet on when they will end.
Critics and supporters alike believe that Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman is behind the purge, whose influence skyrocketed when his father appointed him defense minister in 2015 when the crown prince was 29. He vowed to modernize the ultra-conservative society. And to do so, he has seized control of critical economic, political, judicial, and security projects and programs. In June, he removed former crown prince Prince Nayef, the most staunch US ally within the royal family, from his path and became crown prince. Nayef is still under house arrest, according to Human Rights Watch. In September, Crown Prince Muhammad organized the arrests of prominent intellectuals and spiritual leaders.
On Saturday, November 4, King Salman created a new Anti-Corruption Commission and appointed Crown Prince MBS - that's what Muhammad is commonly called - as its head. Immediately after that, the arrests began.
“There is an interesting form of dictatorship taking shape in Saudi Arabia at the moment,” Jamal Khashoggi, a well-known Saudi columnist and former editor and adviser to Saudi diplomats who are currently in exile, told me. “MBS becomes supreme leader.” The only country where such a title now exists is Iran, a sworn enemy of Saudi Arabia.
According to experts, these arrests represent an attempt to consolidate power in the hands of the crown prince in anticipation of the possible departure of the aged and ailing king. This father-son duo has already created a whole new royal family that has managed to beat hundreds of other princes. “The House of Saud and the world now know that Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman is ready to use any means to take the throne following the death or abdication of his 81-year-old father, King Salman,” wrote David Ottaway, Research Fellow, in an email. Woodrow Wilson Center in Washington DC. “Never before in the history of Saudi Arabia has anything like this happened, and it seems that the kingdom is now entering uncharted territory with unclear prospects.”
The Crown Prince also has the power to seize assets and impose visa bans. The Times reported that all members of the numerous Saudi royal family were banned from leaving the country. Ibn Saud, the founding king of modern Saudi Arabia, had over 40 sons and even more daughters. Today, the number of his descendants, according to various estimates, ranges from 6 to 15 thousand people.
After the death of Ibn Saud in 1953, the first generation of sons passed on the kingship from older to younger - with the consent of other brothers. They ruled by consensus. But now everything is different. Now the young prince from among the grandchildren was ahead of all the other applicants.
“It is striking that all this was done methodically. He gradually took action to silence all dissenters, step aside or withdraw, said Robert Malley, vice president of the International Crisis Group and a former member of the Obama administration's National Security Council. “No one could stop him. He got the better of his opponents."
The Trump administration is backing this sweeping change, which has seen the kingdom — and the royal family — radically transformed over the past two years. En route to Asia, just hours before the start of the purge on Saturday, Nov. 4, President Trump spoke to the King by phone from aboard the presidential plane and praised him and the Crown Prince for their statements about "the need to create a moderate, peaceful and tolerant region." , which is "necessary to guarantee a prosperous future for the people of Saudi Arabia, to stop the financing of terrorist activities and to defeat radical ideology - once and for all - so that the world is finally freed from its evil," according to an official statement from the White House.
Trump also said he is personally trying to convince the kingdom to list state oil company Aramco, one of the largest in the world, on the New York Stock Exchange, or NASDAQ. “This could be the biggest public offering ever,” Trump told reporters who were on the plane with him. “Now they are not considering this possibility due to litigation and other risks, which is very sad.”
Trump did not mention the risks associated with listing shares in the US, but one such risk is that any Saudi assets in the US could be seized under the Justice Against Sponsors of Terrorism Act, which was passed by Congress in 2016. This law allows families of victims of the 9/11 attacks to file a civil suit in Lower Manhattan court against Saudi Arabia for alleged involvement in those attacks. If the court reaches a verdict against the kingdom, the law would allow the judge to freeze the kingdom's assets in the US to pay fines ordered by the court.
“This means that Saudi Arabia will be in a very vulnerable position by listing shares on the New York Stock Exchange,” said Bruce Riedel, a former CIA, Pentagon and former member of the National Security Council. “And they know it.”
Ironically, Trump supported the Justice Against Sponsors of Terrorism Act and condemned President Obama for vetoing it. "Obama's veto on the law
'Justice against sponsors of terrorism' is a shameful move that will be one of the lowest points of his presidency," Trump said on the campaign trail. Congress overturned Obama's veto - shortly before his resignation and the only time Congress overturned it Solution: Now Trump is criticizing the law.
As part of its lobbying campaign against the bill, Saudi Arabia has spent more than a quarter of a million dollars on Trump's new Washington hotel, the Wall Street Journal reported in June. As part of this campaign, several military veterans spoke before Congress to criticize the bill.
The Trump administration has actively sought the favor of the House of Saud. Trump's first overseas trip as president was to Saudi Arabia. In late October, without any prior announcement, Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner visited the kingdom for the third time this year. According to the official story, during his trip, the Middle East peace process was discussed, but Kushner managed to forge friendly relations with the Saudi crown prince, both in their early 30s. The close ties of the royal family with the Trump administration apparently gave the king and his son an opportunity to calm down relate to the harsh measures that they take against their own people.
The string of purges is a reflection of both the crown prince's weaknesses and his growing influence, in part because his plans to rebuild the ultra-conservative kingdom and increase Saudi Arabia's presence in the region are now in jeopardy. His ambitious plans to rebuild the kingdom are reflected in Vision 2030, a grand program to diversify the Saudi economy away from oil. However, not all members of the royal family support the crown prince - a relatively young man in a system known for its elderly leaders.
“This is an attempt to impose a line of succession on a royal family that has serious doubts about the wisdom of appointing a young general, as he is called, as leader,” said Riedel, author of the new book Kings and Presidents: Saudi Arabia and America since Roosevelt (Kings and Presidents: Saudi Arabia and America since FDR) - And these doubts are well founded.
The Saudi Vision 2030 is increasingly failing economically. It has more and more characteristics of the Pozni scheme. In the new city of Neom in the Gulf of Aqaba, which will have to attract $500 billion in investment and will not operate in the usual norms of Saudi society "That is, women there will be able to do whatever they want - there will be more robots than people. All this is not serious. It's more like a trick that should distract people from real problems," Riedel added.
The crown prince's strategy in the region has so far brought mostly negative results. “His main foreign policy project was the war in Yemen, which turned out to be a serious problem for Riyadh,” said Riedel, who is now at the Brookings Institution. “His blockade of Qatar was a failure. He wants Qatar to become like Bahrain, that is, a kind of appendage. But Qatar did not give up.
Apparently, Saudi Arabia is involved in the resignation of Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri, which became part of the struggle for influence in the region. Hariri made a statement on a Saudi TV channel while in Riyadh. He mentioned the threat to his life and the interference of Iran and Hezbollah in Lebanese politics. His father, who also served as prime minister, made his fortune building facilities in Saudi Arabia. In 2005 he was killed.
“Saudi Arabia called him out and forced him to resign,” said Molly of the International Crisis Group. “It was the Saudis who made the decision on how to deal with Iran and Hezbollah. Everything is very transparent. What MBS has done inside the kingdom and in the region is attempts to clear the place, make themselves and the king more aggressive players in the region and eliminate all its competitors in the domestic arena.
The official explanation for the purges within the large royal family was the fight against corruption, but critics dispute this version.
“Corruption has been eating away at Saudi Arabia for 40-50 years,” Khashoggi said. The new branch of the House of Saud builds exactly the same kind of business that it calls corrupt in cases where other members of the royal family are at the head of it. “They say: ‘What you do is corruption, and what I do is not corruption,’” he added.
Among those arrested was Prince al-Waleed bin Talal, an investor and billionaire who, in the process of doing business, communicated with Michael Bloomberg, Rupert Murdoch, and Bill Gates. Al-Waleed owned prime real estate around the world, as well as luxury hotels, including the Savoy in London and the George V in Paris. In 2005, he provided $20 million to Georgetown University to fund the Center for Christian-Muslim Understanding, which was named after him. He even promised to eventually give most of his fortune to charity.
Prince al-Walid did not hold any positions in the government and was never considered a politician. However, in 2012, he wrote in the Wall Street Journal: “If there is one lesson we should learn from the events of the Arab Spring, it is the realization that the winds of change that are now sweeping through the Middle East will reach all Arab states sooner or later. Now is an opportune moment - especially for the Arab monarchical regimes, which still enjoy popular acceptance and legitimacy - to start taking measures that will allow their citizens to take a more active part in political life.
He was sympathetic to a young Tunisian fruit vendor who set himself on fire to protest police corruption that robbed him of his income and thus launched the Arab Spring.
“Tragic as it was, Bouazizi's self-immolation summarized the collective sense of hopelessness and despair felt by many Arabs,” he wrote. “To put it simply, they couldn't take it anymore. Their calls to the leaders were short and to the point: 'enough' and 'leave'."
However, Prince al-Walid had a conflict with Donald Trump. He was one of the investors who bought the Plaza in New York from the then real estate mogul. He also bought a yacht from the future president. However, al-Walid has been critical of Trump's policies. In December 2015, he tweeted: “Donald Trump, you are a disgrace not only to the Republican Party, but to all of America. Leave the race because you will never win."
Eight hours later, Trump replied: “Stupid Prince al-Waleed bin Talal wants to control our American politicians with daddy’s money. He won't be able to do that when I'm elected." But the prince got almost twice as many retweets. It should be noted that Trump also received significant financial support from his father.
The most influential person arrested over the weekend was Miteb bin Abdullah, head of the National Guard and son of the late King Abdullah, who died in 2015. Prince Miteb, who is more than 40 years older than the current crown prince, was considered a potential king in the past. He led the most powerful military branch in the country, whose duty was to protect the royal family.
"Prince Miteb's arrest is a signal that the kingdom is facing a dictatorship by an overconfident 32-year-old prince of unclear ability, as well as serious tensions and discontent within the royal family that could threaten the stability of the House of Saud for years to come," Ottaway wrote in an email. from the Woodrow Wilson Center.
Many experts are convinced that more arrests will occur in the near future. “This is a reckless game of thrones,” said Sarah Leah Whitson, director of the Middle East and North Africa chapter of Human Rights Watch. - If I were in the place of the representatives of the Saudi elite, I would not sit and wait. Many of them have long known that they are on the verge of disaster. Arrests are another signal.”
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The dynasty of emirs (1720-1932) and kings (since 1932) of Saudi Arabia.
The history of the Saudis is the history of the creation of a single Arabian state. At the beginning of the XVIII century. the population of the Arabian Peninsula - both the Bedouins of the steppes and the settled farmers of the oases - broke up into many tribes. Disunited and at war with each other, they incessantly waged internecine wars over pastures, over herds, over prey, over sources of water. All settled Arabia was a conglomerate of small and smallest principalities. Almost every village and city had its own hereditary ruler. This fragmentation made it easier for foreign conquerors to seize the peninsula. Back in the 16th century. the Turks occupied the Red Sea regions of Arabia: Hijaz, Asir and Yemen. In the XVIII century. the Persians captured the east coast: al-Hasa, Oman and Bahrain. Only inner Arabia (Nejd), surrounded by a ring of deserts, remained inaccessible to the invaders. It was in Nejd that a new religious doctrine arose - Wahhabism - put by the Saudis as the basis of their struggle to collect the Arabian lands.
Although formally all Arabs professed Islam and considered themselves Muslims, in fact, countless local tribal religions existed in Arabia. Each Arab tribe, each village had its own fetishes, beliefs and rituals. Against this polyformism, the founder of the Wahhabi doctrine, the non-Jin theologian Muhammad ibn Abd al-Wahhab, who emphasized the unity, transcendence of God, sharply criticized the heretical innovations, especially the widespread cult of saints, as well as the remnants of pre-Islamic fetishism and the veneration of the sacred. places. Formally, he did not create new dogmas, but only sought to restore among the Arabs the religion of Islam in its original Qur'anic purity. In 1744, the ruler of the small Nejd principality Dariya, Emir Muhammad ibn Saud and his son Abd al-Aziz I, were among the first to adopt the teachings of the Wahhabis. the banner of Wahhabism - they subjugated one by one the neighboring emirs and brought the Bedouin tribes to obedience. By 1786, Wahhabism won a complete victory in Najd. In place of many small principalities that were at war with each other, a relatively large theocratic state was formed, headed by the Saudi dynasty. In 1792, after the death of the founder of Wahhabism, Muhammad ibn al-Wahhab, the Saudis united secular and spiritual power in their hands. Their next step was the spread of Wahhabism to the entire peninsula. In 1786, the Saudis made their first foray into the coast of the Persian Gulf. Then these campaigns began to be repeated regularly.
The son of Abd al-Aziz, Emir Saud, who since 1788 was considered his official successor and led all military operations, managed to unite virtually the entire Arabian Peninsula and create a strong state. In the southeast, only the Sultan of Oman, who relied on the support of the British, dared to resist him. In the end, the Wahhabis had to retreat from Muscat. In the west of the peninsula, the war was also very stubborn. The rulers of Taif and Asir soon joined Wahhabism, but the sheriff of Mecca, Khalib, put up fierce resistance to the Saudis. Only in 1803 did they manage to capture Mecca, after which all manifestations of fetishism and idolatry were exterminated here. The Kaaba lost its rich decoration, the graves of the "saints" were destroyed, and the mullahs who persisted in the old faith were executed. In 1804, Emir Saud, who by this time had become the head of the Wahhabis (Abd al-Aziz was killed in the mosque during prayer in the fall of 1803 by an unknown dervish), seized Medina. By 1806, he annexed the entire Hijaz to his state. After that, hostilities moved beyond the borders of Arabia - to Syria and Iraq. Here the Wahhabis had to face the stubborn resistance of the Shiite population. As a result, they failed to retain a single city of any significance. And soon the Wahhabis had to forget about external aggression altogether. In 1811, the ruler of Egypt, Muhammad Ali, spoke out against them. The Egyptians captured the port of Yangbo, and then began to move deeper into the peninsula. In 1812 they captured Medina, and in 1813 - Mecca. Soon the entire Hijaz was conquered. In 1815, Muhammad Ali defeated a 30,000-strong army of Wahhabis at Basal. According to the terms of the treaty concluded soon, Emir Abdallah I was forced to recognize himself as a vassal of the Turkish Sultan and abandon the Hijaz. However, the agreement was fragile, and in 1816 the war resumed. In 1818, the Egyptians invaded Nejd and after a five-month siege took the stronghold of Wahhabitism - Dariya. The city was reduced to ruins, and its entire population fled. The captured Emir Abdallah I was beheaded in Istanbul in the same year.
However, the Saudis did not stop fighting. In 1821, Abdallah's cousin Emir Turki became the head of the rebels. He made the fortress of Riyadh his new capital. After several years of war, the emir succeeded in restoring Saudi rule over Najd, but in May 1834 he was shot dead in the mosque by the mercenaries of Mashari ibn Abd ar-Rahman (a representative of another line of Saudis), who captured Riyadh and tried to establish himself in it. Two months later, the son and heir of Turki, Emir Faisal I, recaptured Riyadh with a bold raid, dealt with Mashari and proclaimed himself the head of the Wahhabi state. However, in 1838 he was captured by the Egyptians, who again took possession of Riyadh, al-Hasa and Qatif. They handed over the throne to Emir Khalid ibn Saud, son of the famous Saud II, but as soon as the Egyptians left Arabia in 1840, Khalid was overthrown.
In 1841, Abdullah II, the great-great-grandson of the founder of the House of Saud, became the emir of Nejd. He was an active ruler, but overly cruel. The Shammar chronicler Dari ibn Rashid wrote of him as a brave man, "who, however, shed much blood and killed many pious people; he was hated, while Faisal was loved." When the latter managed to free himself from Egyptian captivity in 1843, he was supported by many local rulers, and above all by the emir of Khalil Abdallah ibn Ali ar-Rashid. Relying on his help, Faisal overthrew Abdallah II (he was captured and died in prison, possibly from poison) and restored the Wahhabi state. However, he was already far from his former power - the borders of the Saudi emirate actually did not go beyond Najd. After Faisal's death in December 1865, his eldest son Abdullah III became emir. He was a brave, energetic and at the same time strict ruler, who enjoyed the support of the inhabitants of cities and oases. Soon, his younger brother Saud III rebelled against him, a generous man who knew how to win the love of the nomads. In 1870, Saud defeated the troops of Abdallah at Judah, and in 1871 captured Riyadh. Abdullah fled. The Bedouins of Saud sacked the city without mercy. The war continued later, causing terrible damage to the inhabitants of Najd. One of the historians of this era, Ibn Sina, wrote: "The fetters of power were weakened, unrest increased, hunger and high prices worsened the situation, people ate the meat of fallen donkeys, many died of hunger. People were doomed to hunger, death, misfortune, robbery, murder, destruction. In January 1875, Saud III died (either from smallpox or from poison). Power for a short time was seized by the youngest son of Faisal I Abd ar-Rahman. In 1876, he gave it to the returned Abdallah III. By this time, only Riyadh and its environs remained under the control of the Saudis. “The city of Riyadh with its surroundings is all that remains of the Wahhabi possessions,” wrote the English traveler C. Doughty. “Has it become a small and weak principality? the guest hall is abandoned, the servants of Ibn Saud (Abdallah III) leave his fading star... None of the Bedouins obey the Wahhabis?" On the other hand, their neighbors, the emirs of Jebel Shammar from the Alrashidid clan, became stronger. In 1887, Muhammad ibn Rashid took possession of Riyadh and included it in his state. The Saudis had to be content with the role of Alrashidid governors in Riyadh. In 1884-1889. such a governor was considered Abdallah III, in 1889-1891. - his younger brother Abd ar-Rahman, and in 1891-1902. (after the unsuccessful uprising of the Wahhabis, which ended with the flight of Abd ar-Rahman to Kuwait) - the third of the sons of Faisal I Muhammad ibn Faisal al-Mutawwi. This latter did not enjoy any real power and devoted himself entirely to the cultivation of flowers.
The son of Abd ar-Rahman, Abd al-Aziz II, had to recreate the Wahhabi state of the Saudis practically from scratch. His half-century reign became a whole epoch in the history of Arabia. Starting as a homeless exile, a landless emir, he ended up as the absolute monarch of a large state that united most of the Arabian Peninsula within its borders and soon became one of the world's largest oil exporters. The billions of petrodollars that poured into poverty-stricken Arabia after the Second World War completely changed the face of this country. Before others, the heady influence of easy money was felt by the princes of the ruling dynasty. Many members of the Saudi clan in 1940-1950. traveled abroad and got acquainted with the conditions of European life. Returning to their homeland, they began to spend huge amounts of money on unheard-of luxury. Saudi Arabia has gilded Cadillacs and palaces with luxurious furnishings, central air conditioning, gardens, swimming pools and tennis courts. Enormous funds were spent on harems, on toilets and jewelry of wives and concubines, on the maintenance of slaves, servants, chauffeurs, bodyguards and just hangers-on. Corruption of the royal court and the bureaucracy began to take on monstrous proportions.
After the death of Abd al-Aziz II, his eldest son Saud IV became king, and the next oldest son Faisal was declared crown prince. Their mothers were different and all their lives there was rivalry between the brothers. They were very different in character. Saud, who had neither the authority nor the strength of the personality of Abd al-Aziz, shared all his shortcomings to such an extent that he seemed like a caricature of his father. He squandered the wealth that fell to his lot like a real oriental despot. So, the king built 25 palaces for himself (only one of them - Nasyriyya - cost several tens of millions of dollars), maintained a numerous harem, a court of five thousand people, littered with money and sincerely believed that the country's income was his property (though what most of his subjects continued to live in squalid poverty). But this state of affairs could not last long. The country quickly emerged from international isolation, new trends and new ideas began to penetrate even the most backward Bedouin tribes. From the beginning of the 1950s in Saudi Arabia began to expand the opposition movement. This alarmed the Saudis. But the Egyptian and Iraqi revolutions made a particularly strong impression on the ruling elite. Fearing a coup, the most sensible members of the Family began to realize the need for reform. Since such reforms were impossible under Saud, a palace coup had to be resorted to. In March 1958, a group of princes led by Fahd ibn Abu al-Aziz delivered an ultimatum to the king, demanding to transfer power to Faisal, protect the treasury from embezzlement, remove the most odious advisers and equalize Saud's brothers in rights with his sons. The king relented, and on March 31, 1958, Faisal was appointed to the post of prime minister. In June, he accepted the financial stabilization program proposed by the International Monetary Fund. It provided for the reduction of state spending to the level of income, the reform of the monetary system, and the restriction of food imports. The construction of new royal palaces was stopped. All this made it possible by 1960 to improve the economic situation of the country. In the same year, Saud fired Faisal and took over the cabinet himself. But in 1962, after his health deteriorated sharply, Saud had to restore his brother to the post of head of the cabinet, and then declare him regent of the kingdom.
Meanwhile, the Yemeni revolution of 1962 once again reminded of the need for social reforms. All elements of the situation that led to the revolutionary explosion in the neighboring country also existed in Saudi Arabia. It was necessary to mitigate the social contradictions in the kingdom, and Faisal came to the conclusion that for this the government should intervene more actively in the economic life of the country. The budget included a significant increase in allocations for education and health. At the same time, repressions against dissidents intensified. At the beginning of 1963, the main center of the opposition, the National Liberation Front, was defeated, many of whose leaders ended up in prison. All these measures brought the regent popularity and support in society. When King Saud returned to Saudi Arabia in 1964 after a long treatment, it turned out that all the levers of power were already in the hands of Faisal, and his people were in all key positions. The National Guard was also on his side. Nevertheless, Saud again tried to dismiss Faisal. The consequence of this was a new "family" palace coup. In March 1964, 68 Saudi princes demanded from the king that he transfer full power to his brother. Saudi had to comply. On November 4, 1964, he abdicated, and in January 1965 he left the country.
Having become king, Faisal began to carry out the reforms he had long conceived. Entrepreneurial activity has noticeably revived in Saudi Arabia. The state began to allocate significant funds for urban construction, improvement, electrification, and communal needs. The state company took up the industrial development of the country. An oil refinery in Jeddah was bought and reconstructed. The construction of chemical enterprises, roads, airports began. The main centers of the country were connected by automatic telephone communication. At this time, the world economy was experiencing an oil boom. Revenues from the sale of oil have multiplied tenfold. The huge funds that ended up in the hands of the king allowed him to completely change the face of his country in just ten years and make Saudi Arabia one of the richest and most prosperous states on the planet. Social tension gradually subsided, the power of the ruling dynasty was strengthened. Faisal's successors continued his policy.
The current king of Saudi Arabia is Faisal II's younger brother, Fahd. (It is known that in his youth, Fahd was a great sybarite. He visited the nightclubs of Beirut so often that he knew all the belly dancers by name, and in the Monte Carlo casino he lost several million dollars in one weekend. There were rumors about his love affairs legends. These liberties did not please the older members of the family. In 1953, the elder brother and future king Faisal, known for his asceticism and piety, called Fahd home and gave him a severe "dressing down". After that, Fahd "took up his mind" and devoted himself to public affairs. First he served as minister of education, then - minister of the interior. In 1975, King Khaled, who ascended the throne, declared Fahd his heir. However, Khaled himself, who suffered from an incurable heart disease, delved into affairs little, and in fact, all the years of his reign Fahd ruled the country in his place.) Fahd himself was actively involved in state affairs for twenty years. In 1996, due to a serious illness, he was forced to retire and transferred the authority to govern the country to his younger brother, Crown Prince Abdallah.
As already mentioned, the basis of the economic well-being and prosperity of Saudi Arabia is the income received from the sale of oil. (The growth dynamics of these incomes is illustrated by the following figures: if in 1943 the kingdom received only 2 million dollars of net profit from the sale of "black gold", then in 1953 this figure increased to 170 million, in 1963 - up to 455 million, in 1973 - up to 4 billion 330 million, and in the "star" for Saudi Arabia in 1980, the profit was 118 billion dollars!) Their own economy cannot accommodate such colossal funds, so the Saudis invest them in the economy of Western countries, primarily the United States (currently Saudi Arabia is the largest foreign investor in the US). Significant sums are annually spent on the creation of infrastructure and social programs. First-class roads, ports and beautiful cities in the desert were built with petrodollars. Saudi Arabia has one of the best health care systems in the world, and health care is free for all citizens of the kingdom. Education is also free - from kindergartens to universities. The state partially pays for the education of its citizens abroad. Each Saudi family receives 627 m2 of land free of charge and an $80,000 interest-free loan for 30 years to build a house. The entire population is exempt from paying taxes.
But the Saudi ruling clan has benefited the most from the oil boom.
The intertwining of state power with oil production in Saudi Arabia is so great that almost all members of the royal family take part in the development of oil policy and receive their share of the dividends. At all the main posts in the kingdom - members of the Saudi clan (at the moment it has about 5,000 people). The king personally chairs the Supreme Council of Saudi Arabia's national oil company, the Saudi Arabian Oil Company, and accordingly has the largest income. So, for example, Fahd's personal fortune is second only to that of the Sultan of Brunei. He has at least 12 royal palaces (only one of them - the Empire-style Al-Yama complex in Riyadh - cost its owner $ 2.5 billion). Fahd owns several jet planes and yachts where the water pipes in the bathrooms are made of solid gold.
Great Definition
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Karim al Saud and Sultana al Saud
A wedding in a Muslim family, and even more so in the royal family of Saudi Arabia, has always been a ceremony hidden from prying eyes. Especially - from the eyes of Europeans. And only in the 90s of the twentieth century, when the books of the American Jean P. Sasson began to be published, the veil of secrecy over the wedding ceremonies of the Saudis was slightly opened.
Jin has been interested in Eastern culture since childhood. The researcher's curiosity led Jean to take a job in 1978 as an administrative coordinator at the King Faisal Hospital and Research Center in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Jean worked there for four years, after which she married the Englishman Peter Sasson. Jean lived in Saudi Arabia until 1991. In 1983, at a reception at the Italian embassy, Jean met a woman from the Saudi royal family, the al-Sauds. The women became friends. The Saudi princess told the American about life in the female half of the Arab world. And she agreed that Jean wrote a book from her words, setting the only condition: to change the names. Since then, not a single most curious and cunning journalist has been able to find out who is hiding under the name of Sultana al-Saud. Because the discovery of this truth could cost a woman her life.
The banquet hall where the wedding of the Sultana and Karim al-Saud was celebrated
Among other things, Sultana spoke about how weddings are held in Arab royal families. First - about the traditional one, which she witnessed in 1969, when her sister Sarah was married off. The wedding of the Sultana herself, which took place three years later, was no longer so traditional, already with a Western bias. At least without open coercion, besides, Karim and Sultana, at the end of the ceremony, left for their honeymoon trip to Europe.
1969, Sarah's wedding:
“No less than fifteen women scurried back and forth anxiously, trying not to miss anything important in preparing the bride for the wedding. The first ceremony, halava, was performed by the mother and one of the older aunts. It is supposed to remove all hair from the bride's body, with the exception of eyelashes and hair on the head. A special mixture of sugar, rose water, and lemon juice applied to the body was simmering in the kitchen. When the sweet mass dries on the body, it is torn off along with the hair. The smell of the mixture was very pleasant, but this procedure causes terrible pain, and Sarah's screams still ring in my ears, making me shudder with horror.
Henna was prepared for washing the hair, which was supposed to give Sarah's luxurious hair a slight sheen of polished mahogany. Her fingernails and toenails were painted a bright red that reminded me of the color of blood. A pale pink bridal shirt adorned with gorgeous lace hung on a hook by the door, and a diamond necklace with matching bracelet and earrings lay on the dressing table. The jewelry was sent to Sarah a few weeks ago as a wedding present from her fiancé, but she didn't even touch it.
When a Saudi bride is happy and marries for love, the room in which she is prepared for her wedding is full of laughter and joy. On the day of my sister's wedding, there was an oppressive silence in her room - one might have thought that the women were preparing her body for burial. Everyone spoke in whispers, and Sarah did not utter a word at all. It was strange for me to see her like this after the events of recent weeks, but later I realized what a trance she was by then.
The father, worried that Sarah might ruin the wedding by voicing his distaste for the groom, ordered one of the doctors on the wedding day to inject her with a strong tranquilizer to deprive her of the strength to resist. We later learned that the same doctor gave the fiance some sedative pills for Sarah. The groom was told that Sarah was too excited about the upcoming marriage and she needed pills to avoid unwanted stomach symptoms. Since the groom had never seen Sarah before, he seemed to be convinced for some time after the wedding that his new wife was a very quiet and accommodating woman. On the other hand, many old men in our country marry young girls, and I am sure they are aware of the fear that their young brides have of them.
The drum roll announced the arrival of the guests. The women finally finished preparing the bride. They put on a beautiful dress, zipped her back, and shod her feet in soft pink shoes. Mother fastened a diamond necklace around Sarah's neck. I loudly proclaimed from my seat that this necklace was no better than a loop or a lasso. One of the aunts gave me a slap, and the other twisted my ear painfully, but Sarah did not react in any way to my words. Everyone gathered around her in admiring silence. None of those present had ever seen a more beautiful bride in their lives.
For the ceremony, a huge canopy was installed in the courtyard of the villa. The whole garden was filled with flowers sent from Holland and playing in the sun with all the colors of the rainbow. The spectacle turned out to be so beautiful that for a while I even forgot about what a tragic event is happening in my sister's life.
Many guests gathered in the shade under the canopy. Women from the royal family, literally studded with diamonds, rubies and emeralds, gathered together with representatives of the lower strata of society, which in itself rarely happens in Saudi Arabia. Commoners are allowed to attend the weddings of noble girls, provided that they do not remove the veil and do not enter into conversations with aristocrats. One of my friends told me that there were times when some men dressed in women's dress with a veil in order to be able to look at the faces of those who would never show themselves to a man. The men themselves celebrated this event in one of the largest hotels in the city, where they entertained themselves in the same way as the women in the bride's house - chatting, eating and dancing.
In Saudi Arabia, during the wedding, women and men gather in different places. The only men who are allowed to attend the women's celebration are the groom, the father of the groom and the father of the bride, as well as the priest who performs the ceremony. In our case, the groom's father was excluded - he had been dead for a long time, so, apart from the priest, only my father and the groom were present at the ceremony.
Finally, the slaves and servants began to serve food, around which pandemonium immediately set in. Commoners who came to the feast in a veil were the first to be admitted to the tables. These poor women were greedily grabbing food they too rarely had a chance to taste. Their hands flashed as they sent piece after piece under their covers. After them, the rest of the guests came up to their tables and started eating smoked salmon from Norway, Russian caviar, quail eggs and other delicacies. Four huge tables were breaking under the weight of food. Appetizers were on the left, main courses in the middle, desserts on the right, and soft drinks were on a separate table. Alcohol, forbidden by the Qur'an, was of course absent, although I saw that many women brought small flasks in their purses and, giggling, retired to the bathrooms from time to time to take a sip.
Finally came the most interesting, in my opinion, part of the holiday. Egyptian dancers appeared who were supposed to perform a belly dance. The crowd of women of all ages fell silent, watching the dance with wary interest. We Saudis tend to take ourselves way too seriously and are suspicious of any form of fun, so I was pretty stunned when one of my elderly aunts suddenly ran downtown and joined the dancing Egyptians, showing surprisingly high class, which led me in complete admiration, despite the disapproving whispering of the rest of the relatives.
The roar of drums was heard again, and I realized that the bride should appear now. All the guests looked in anticipation at the doors through which she was supposed to go out into the courtyard. Indeed, after a few seconds the doors opened and Sarah appeared, followed by her mother and one of the older aunts.
Sarah's face was covered by a translucent pink veil, supported by a tiara of pink pearls. My sister was dazzlingly beautiful, and everyone present gasped in admiration and clicked their tongues. Under the veil, one could see how tense with fear her face was, but this did not bother the guests in the least - after all, the young bride should be frightened.
Following Sarah, two dozen relatives came out the door, expressing their joy at the upcoming ceremony with loud exclamations and clatter. The women in the courtyard also burst into cheers. Sarah staggered, but her mother supported her by the elbow.
Soon my father appeared, accompanied by the groom. I knew that the groom was older than my father, but it's one thing to know, and another thing to see with your own eyes. He seemed to me a very ancient old man, and in appearance he resembled a fox. I even winced when I imagined him touching my shy, gentle sister.
The groom lifted Sarah's veil and broke into a pleased smirk. The sister was too sedated to react and didn't move as she looked at her new master. The real wedding took place much earlier, and there were no women present. The men gathered separately and signed a marriage contract between themselves, specifying the details that made my sister neither cold nor hot. Only a few words will be said today, and poor Sarah will forever lose the illusory freedom she had while living in her father's house.
The priest announced that Sarah was now a legal wife and that the bride price due in such cases had been paid in full. Then he looked at the groom, who, in turn, said that he was taking Sarah as his wife and from that moment she was under his protection and protection. None of the men during the ceremony even looked at Sarah. After reading a few passages from the Quran, the priest blessed my sister's marriage. All the women present burst into cheers and claps again. It's done! Sarah is married. Satisfied men, smiling, shook hands.
Sarah still stood motionless, and the groom took out a purse from the pocket of his toba (a long robe, like a loose shirt to the toes worn by Saudi men) and began to distribute gold coins to the guests. I winced in disgust as I heard him accept congratulations on marrying such a beautiful girl. He grabbed my sister by the arm and hurriedly led her away.
1972, Sultana's wedding:
“Nura came to us and said that I was to marry Karim, one of our cousins. I used to date his sister when I was a little girl, but I don't remember anything she said about her brother other than the fact that he likes to be bossy. At that time he was twenty-eight, and I was to become his first wife. Noora said that she saw his photograph and found him extremely attractive. He was an educated young man and even graduated from the law school in London. Noora said that, unlike the rest of our cousins, he was serious about business and had real weight in the business world. He was the head of one of the largest law firms in Riyadh. I was very lucky, Noora noted, since Karim told my father that he wanted me to complete my education before I got married, as he was not interested in a wife with whom he could not communicate properly.
On the occasion of my wedding, the room in which I was prepared for the ceremony was full of fun. Surrounded by the women of my family, I could not make out a single word of what they were saying, as their simultaneous chatter merged into a continuous cheerful, cheerful rumble.
My dress was made from the brightest red lace I could find. I felt great satisfaction that I could once again shock my family, who strongly advised me to wear something pale pink. As always, I insisted on my own, because I was sure that I was right. In the end, even my sisters had to admit that the bright red color favorably sets off my skin and eyes.
I experienced true bliss when Sarah and Noora put a dress on me and buttoned all the buttons. A slight sadness seized me when Nura fastened Karim's gift - a necklace of rubies and diamonds - around my neck.
It's time to start a new life. There was a roar of drums, drowning out even the sounds of an orchestra that had arrived from Egypt specifically to play at our wedding. Accompanied by Noora and Sarah, I walked out with my head held high to the guests, who had been crowding in the garden impatiently for a long time.
As is customary in Saudi Arabia, the official ceremony was held ahead of time. Karim and his relatives were in one half of the palace, I was with my relatives in the other, and the priest went from room to room and asked us if we agreed to the marriage. Neither Karim nor I were allowed to have a word with each other. The celebration had already lasted for four days and four nights, and after Karim and I appeared before the guests, three more days of fun were to come.
The current day was devoted to the union of the newlyweds on the marriage bed. It was our day with Karim! I haven't seen my fiancé since our first meeting, although there hasn't been a day that we haven't had long conversations on the phone. And finally, I saw him again.
He slowly walked towards the pavilion, accompanied by his father. Excitement seized me when I thought that this handsome man would now become my husband. All my senses sharpened, I noticed every little thing: the way his hands were trembling nervously, the way a vein in his throat was beating, betraying a rapid heartbeat.
I imagined his heart beating in his chest, and thought with pleasure that this heart would henceforth belong to me. Now it depended on me whether it would beat from happiness or from grief. I realized that I take responsibility.
When Karim finally approached me, I was suddenly overcome by a wave of emotion. My lips trembled, tears welled up in my eyes, and I could hardly restrain myself from bursting into tears. However, it only lasted a few seconds, and when my fiancé carefully lifted my veil and opened my face, we both laughed with joy.
The women around us burst into cheers and stamped their feet loudly. It is not often in Saudi Arabia that a bride and groom meet each other with such joy. I looked into Karim's eyes and literally drowned in them, unable to believe my happiness. I grew up in darkness, and my husband, who by all laws should have become for me another source of fear and grief, actually promised me deliverance from the shackles of slavery.
Karim and I wanted to be alone so much that we stayed among the guests for a very short time, accepting congratulations. While Karim scattered gold coins among the merry guests, I quietly slipped away to change for the honeymoon trip.
Sultana turned out to be a freedom-loving woman and could not forgive Karim when, many years later, he wished to take his second wife. She moved to live in Europe and fought against the oppression of women in her native country, telling the truth about how the captives of golden cages actually live in half-fairy Arabia. In our time, books written under the dictation of the Sultana are of interest mainly because they depict the secret life of Saudi women for a European.
