Manama: Saudis pledged full allegiance to Crown Prince Mohammad Bin Salman Al Saud Al Saud hours after he replaced Prince Mohammad Bin Nayef Bin Abdul Aziz Al Saud.
The ceremony, open to members of the family, officials and the public, was held on Wednesday evening at the Safa Palace in Makkah where King Salman is spending the last ten days of the holy month of Ramadan.
Breaking with traditions, Prince Mohammad headed straight to his uncles and senior members of Al Saud family to kiss them on their heads and hands in a mark of deep respect. He also went to the Grand Mufti and greeted him.
Traditionally, the crown prince stands in the centre and all the people come to him to greet him.
■ Crown Prince Mohammad greets Saudi Arabai’s Grand Mufti Abdul Aziz Bin Abdullah Al Shaikh on Wednesday night. |
Prince Salman later stood in the centre as civilians and military staff queued up to pledge their allegiance to him.
One well-wisher was keen on taking a selfie with Prince Mohammad, the youngest crown prince since the kingdom was founded in 1932, and, despite the heavy crowd, he was allowed to take his time for the historic snap.
While several Saudis flocked to the Safa Palace, allegiance centres were opened across the vast kingdom and governors and senior officials received well-wishers who voiced support for the new crown prince.
King Salman Bin Abdul Aziz Al Saud had directed regional princes and governors and heads of the Allegiance Council to receive pledges on behalf of the Crown Prince to facilitate the process for citizens and spare them the hardship of traveling to Makkah.
King Salman, who assumed power in January 2015, early on Wednesday appointed Mohammad Bin Salman as Crown Prince after he was chosen by 31 out of 34 members of the Allegiance Council.
King Salman also appointed several young princes to key positions in the country. They took the oath before the king later in the evening.
Outgoing Crown Prince Mohammad Bin Nayef was the first to congratulate Prince Mohammad Bin Salman in a smooth transition of power.
Saudis afterwards voiced pride on social media and on television talk shows that throughout its history, Saudi Arabia has never known a single moment in which there was a power vacuum.
