Saudi royal health problems throw spotlight on succession
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RIYADH — The ailments of Saudi Arabia’s king and crown prince have put the spotlight on a generation of elderly princes whose rule is nearing an end with the future unclear for the world’s top oil supplier.
King Abdullah left the country on Monday to be treated in the United States for a herniated disc complicated by a hematoma. Officials said the condition was not life-threatening, but at 86, it cuts into Abdullah’s energy to rule.
The reins of government were taken up by his half-brother, Crown Prince Sultan bin Abdul Aziz, officially 79 but believed to be aged closer to 85.
But Sultan, the defense and aviation minister since 1962, has battled with what is said to be cancer since at least 2008, and he has severely curtailed his own activities.
In a country where the media and political activities are tightly controlled, stock and currency markets were steady and oil prices rose on news from Europe..... MORE
Source: The Daily Tribune
URL: http://www.tribuneonline.org/commentary/20101125com3.html
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