The disappeared princes in Saudi Arabia: where are they and what are they?
Over the past two years three of a Saudi Prince, who lived in Europe, disappeared. All three criticized the Saudi government, and there is evidence that they were kidnapped and taken to Saudi Arabia, where more of them have not received any news.
Early on the morning of 12 June 2003, the car with a Saudi Prince came to the Palace on the outskirts of Geneva.
Name Prince Sultan bin Turki bin Abdul-Aziz, and the Palace belongs to his uncle, the now deceased king Fahd. Beloved son of the king Prince Abdul-Aziz bin Fahd, the Sultan invited for Breakfast.
Abdul-Aziz requested the Sultan to return to Saudi Arabia, where, he promises, the conflict that arose because of the criticism by the Sultan of the country, will be allowed.
The Sultan refuses, then Abdul-Aziz apologizes for the need to pause for a phone call. The second man in the room, the Saudi Minister of Islamic Affairs Sheikh Saleh al al-Sheikh, too, and a few moments later the room burst into masked men. They beat the Sultan put him in handcuffs, and then stick into his neck a needle.
Unconscious of the Sultan bring to the Geneva airport, where already waiting for transport-an ambulance plane ready for takeoff.
That is, at least, the version of events provided by the Sultan in a Swiss court many years later.
Among the subordinates of the Sultan, waiting in the Geneva hotel back from Breakfast in a Palace was his press Secretary Eddie Ferreira.
“Gradually, as the day passed, the silence became more deafening, he recalls. We could not contact the guard. It was the first real alarm. We tried to contact the Prince; there was no response, no response at all.”
Then, in the second half of the day, on a threshold there were two intruders.
The Ambassador of Saudi Arabia in Switzerland came in accompanied by General Manager of the hotel and simply demanded that you to leave the penthouse and go. The Prince is located in Riyadh, the demand for our services is no more, and we can be Svobodnyi Ferraris Secretary of the Prince Sultan
What did Prince Sultan, what made his family forced to pump him full of drugs and steal?
The year before he came to Europe for treatment and began giving interviews in which critical of the Saudi leadership. He condemned on the situation of human rights in the country, complained about the dominance of corruption among princes and state officials, and also spoke of the need to carry out a series of reforms.
Since 1932, since the founding king Abdul Aziz, known as Ibn Saud, the States of Saudi Arabia, the country remains an absolute monarchy. No dissent is not allowed.
“I know that, I’ll either be kidnapped or killed”
Prince Turki bin Bandar was once a major in the Saudi police, responsible for guarding the Royal family. However, as a result of strong intra-family disagreement over the issue of succession he found himself in prison and after his release he fled to Paris, where in 2012 began posting video messages on YouTube, calling for reforms in Saudi Arabia.
The Saudis have reacted in exactly the same way as in the case with Prince Sultan, trying to persuade the Turks to return home. When he called Deputy interior Minister Ahmed al-Salem, Prince recorded a conversation with him, and then he posted a blog on the Internet.
“Everyone is looking forward to your return, God bless you,” said the Deputy Minister.
“Looking forward to my return? replied the Turks — And what about the letters that I sent to your staff? “You son of a whore, we’ll bring you back as Sultan bin Turki””.
The Deputy Minister tried to calm the Prince: “They can’t hurt you. I’m your brother.”
“No, they were from you,’ said the Turks. — They were sent by the Ministry of internal Affairs”.
The Turks continued to publish video on the Internet until July 2015. Then towards the end of the same year, he was gone.
“He used to call me every month or two, says his friend, blogger and activist Wael al-Khalaf. Then he disappeared for four or five months. I had a suspicion. After that, I learned from a senior official in the Kingdom, Turki bin Bandar is at them. So they grabbed him, took”.