[size=18]Saudi King Fahd dies[/size]
Saudi Arabia's King Fahd has died and Crown Prince Abdullah was swiftly pronounced monarch of the world's largest oil exporter and key US ally.
"With deep sorrow and pain, the royal court ... mourns the death of The Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Fahd due to illness," said an official statement read out on Saudi state television on Monday.
The announcement on television was preceded by recitations from the Quran that interrupted regular broadcasting.
Fahd, who was believed to be 83 and had been in poor health, entered hospital on 27 May with acute pneumonia.
Fahd's half-brother Crown Prince Abdullah, who has been running the kingdom's day-to-day affairs since Fahd suffered a stroke in 1995, automatically becomes king. Defence Minister Prince Sultan will be the new crown prince.
Saudi Arabia is the world's biggest oil exporter and is a close ally of the United States.
In the past two years, the kingdom has faced a violent al-Qaida campaign to end seven decades of the royal family's rule in Saudi Arabia, home to two of Islam's holiest places of worship.
[url=http://english.aljazeera.net/NR/exeres/32968774-4B27-4A5B-9C72-B0B382948...
To ALLAH do we belong and to HIM is our return
Become obedient to the Chief, Muhammad salallahu alayhi wa sallam, so ALL chiefs become obedient to you.
irfan what happened with his wife? did she get what she wanted?
No idea.
what did she want?
Become obedient to the Chief, Muhammad salallahu alayhi wa sallam, so ALL chiefs become obedient to you.
[url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/4091674.stm]Don't know exactly. [/url]
[img]http://img138.imageshack.us/img138/1292/cartoon020805102921a4zd.jpg[/img]
Why has his half brother been appointed as the King. Shouldn't one of his sons be the next king...
The muttawas (the islamic police) disliked King Fahd as they found him to be too lenient as he encouraged the ways of the West.
One thing I liked about King Fahd was that he was open to modernisation as long as it was not going against the teachings of Islam.
For instance there was a big debate many years back between the king and the religious police as the king tried to open up the first radio or TV station in Saudi... not to sure which one... and the muttawas were against this as they felt it would encourage infidelity. King Fahd overcame this prob by having the Quran read on air so that the Muttawas find no reason to complain.
Apparently he was also fight for women to have more rights in his country.
I pray that all his past sins get forgiven and that he finds a place in Jannah.
the Muwatta's of Saudi are extremists
they've always apposed the royal family
but ur rigt that his son should have been king-unless of course his son wasnt fit for the job and the king mentioned this in his will before he died
[url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/255097.stm]Fahd[/url] and [url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/3770033.stm]Abdullah[/url] are sons of the [url=http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ibn_Saud]founder[/url] of the modern state of [url=http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saudi_Arabia]Saudi Arabia[/url]. Their [url=http://www.datarabia.com/royals/famtree.asp?ID=16]generation[/url] is really old. The [url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/4734609.stm]guy[/url] to succeed Abdullah is another son from this generation.
The really [url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/4735505.stm]interesting[/url] and [url=http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Insurgency_in_Saudi_Arabia]volatile[/url] transfer of power will come when this generation dies out. Each of these guys probably has had several dozen sons of their own. They're all gonna want a piece of the [url=http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Economy_of_Saudi_Arabia]pie[/url].
I was really impressed that they actually practiced what they preach!
He had a simple funeral weith a burial in an unmarked grave, with no ornaments etc.
I gotta say in his death I have more respect for him than I had in his life.
"For too long, we have been a passively tolerant society, saying to our citizens 'as long as you obey the law, we will leave you alone'" - David Cameron, UK Prime Minister. 13 May 2015.