Saudi Arabia's King Abdullah dies age 90

'Saudi Arabia's King Abdullah, the powerful U.S. ally who joined Washington's fight against al-Qaida and sought to modernize the ultraconservative Muslim kingdom with incremental but significant reforms, including nudging open greater opportunities for women, has died, according to Saudi state TV. He was 90.

More than his guarded and hidebound predecessors, Abdullah assertively threw his oil-rich nation's weight behind trying to shape the Middle East. His priority was to counter the influence of rival, mainly Shiite Iran wherever it tried to make advances. He and fellow Sunni Arab monarchs also staunchly opposed the Middle East's wave of pro-democracy uprisings, seeing them as a threat to stability and their own rule.'...

King Abdullah leaves behind 12 wives and 30 children. He is succeeded by his half brother, Salman, age 79.

http://www.ctvnews.ca/world/saudi-k...her-salman-takes-over-1.2201534#ixzz3PbGgLTgW
http://www.ctvnews.ca/world/saudi-k...4?hootPostID=a7831686ce2f2a247b6f81a9b3082045

ETA: The king is shown with the Queen of England in the picture, not one of his wives.

'US President Barack Obama expressed his personal sympathies and those of the American people, on the death of King Abdullah.

"As a leader, he was always candid and had the courage of his convictions. One of those convictions was his steadfast and passionate belief in the importance of the US-Saudi relationship as a force for stability and security in the Middle East and beyond," he said.'...


http://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-30945324

zwiebel said:

King Abdullah leaves behind 12 wives and 30 children. He is succeeded by his half brother, Salman, age 79.


ETA: The king is shown with the Queen of England in the picture, not one of his wives.

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