Riyadh: Following the speculations over the wellbeing of Saudi Crown Prince, Mohammed bin Salman by the western media outlets, Saudi Arabia was forced to release a video to quash rumours. It must be noted that Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has not made any public appearance in four weeks.
The prince’s disappearance was linked with the “attempted coup” which took place at the royal palace in the neighbourhood of Khuzama in Riyadh on April, 21. However, the Saudi media has rejected reports circulating on social media claiming the gunshots heard at the palace were part of a military coup attempt while the authorities claim a semi-automatic fire was used to send away a drone that appeared near the palace wall.
French 20 Minutes newspaper and the Observer had raised doubts about the prince’s health as he did not in public since his meeting with the Spanish royal family on April 12. Iranian Kayhan newspaper, citing a secret intelligence report, had also reported that the crown prince had been shot twice during the attack and may have already died. It pointed out that Bin Salman did not appear before camera when new US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo visited Riyadh late last April. Iran’s Kayhan newspaper claimed that “There is plenty of evidence to suggest that the absence of nearly 30 days of Muhammad bin Salman, the Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia, is due to an incident which is being hidden from the public.”
Dispelling the rumours, the Saudi royal family on Wednesday released a photo of bin Salman at a cabinet meeting in Jeddah and confirmed he was alive. Saudi Arabia also published a footage to quash rumours of his death. The clip shows Salman alive and well, greeting Yemeni President Abdrabbo Mansour Hadi in Jeddah yesterday to discuss the ongoing Yemen crisis.