Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman has ordered the arrest of
two senior members of the royal family, Prince Ahmed bin Abdulaziz, the younger
brother of King Salman, and Mohammed bin Nayef, the king's nephew over an
alleged coup attempt.
They were taken from their homes early on Friday by
black-clad royal guards, the Wall Street Journal reported, adding that they
have been accused of treason.
The Saudi royal court has accused the two men, once
potential contenders for the throne, of 'plotting a coup to unseat the king and
crown prince' and could face lifetime imprisonment or execution, the newspaper
said.
Prince Nayef, a once powerful figure as head of Saudi
counter-terrorism efforts, had been crown prince until 2017 when King Salman
took away the title and put his son Prince Mohammed bin Salman, first in line
for the throne.
Mohammed bin Nayef's younger brother, Prince Nawaf bin
Nayef, was also detained.
The detentions were not announced by the Saudi government
but the information were disclosed by a member of the royal family.
A former senior American official also confirmed the
detentions of the senior members of Royal family.
The detentions mark the latest crackdown by Prince Mohammed,
the kingdom's de facto ruler of the kingdom, who has consolidated his grip on
power with several imprisonments of prominent people.
Prince Mohammed was also embroiled in a major scandal over
the murder of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi inside the kingdom's Istanbul
consulate in October 2018.
He was accused of ordering the journalist's murder, and the
killing sparked calls for him to be replaced as Crown Prince.
