Mohammed Bin Salman, MBS, The Saviour of Saudi Arabia or The Tyrant?
Mohammed Bin Salman also known as MBS, The Saviour of Saudi Arabia or The Tyrant?
Considered the de facto ruler of Saudi Arabia, MBS’s rise to power was swift, in January of 2015 once his father Salman bin Abdul-Aziz Al Saud ascended to the throne, he appointed his son MBS as the minister of defense, and the role of deputy crown prince in April of 2015. In 2017 MBS was promoted yet another time, to crown prince, after the dismissal of Crown Prince Mohammad bin Nayef.
Once MBS got a firm grip to power, at the young age of 32, Saudi’s were skeptical of the quick rise of the young royal, and to prove his capability and display leadership, and strength, to not only his royal counterparts, but the greater Saudi people, he decided to get involved in the war in Yemen.
The war was primarily between the Houthi’s, a religious minority, known as Zaydi Shiites, also known as, Zaydiyyah, against the Sunni majority government.
MBS the then minister of defense wanted a swift victory that would display to the world is capability as a commander in chief and savior to the Yemeni people.
With no clear victory insight Saudi Arabia decided to announce a plan to end the war in Yemen, after many bloody years of battle and many lives lost to the conflict, in war torn Yemen.
A comparison can be made between the Arab Bedouin leader of Libya, Muammar Al-Gaddafi and Mohammed Bin Salman, both starting out young, with grand plans of revolutionizing their countries.
MBS has and is completely revolutionizing the culture of Saudi Arabia, from the dismantling of power that religion has played on the greater society, with the removal of the religious police, and allowing the mingling of genders, which were once completely separated in Saudi society.
Vision 2030 is the development program that MBS has laid out in the next coming years, to decrease the dependency on oil, and to diversify, the country’s economy. Simply put destroying the old image and rebuilding a new one of what Saudi Arabia stands for, on the world stage.
The once ultra religious Wahabi state will now become transformed and more palatable to western taste. Due to Saudi Arabia having a largely younger population it has been welcomed with open arms. With many young Saudis celebrating this new Saudi Arabia, the Saudi Arabia of MBS.
With just a fraction of society split over the change, not accepting the drastic changes that have happened throughout the desert kingdom, which seems like overnight.
Neom also known as, “The Line” is an ambitious $500 Billion Desert project to build the first Smart City in Saudi Arabia, located in the northwestern province of Tabuk.
It’s envisioned to be a go-to tourist destination on the Arabian Peninsula, it will incorporate smart city technologies, and will be constructed a linear city 170 kilometers long and 200 meters wide, it is planned to be built with a capacity to hold 9 million residents without conventional cars, and get this, with all essential services being within a 5-minute walking distance.
MBS’s social reforms have seemingly changed the social fabric of Saudi Arabia overnight with women once being relegated to the house, now being part of the workforce, in jobs such as border agents and the military, jobs that were once exclusively for men.
The integration from an outside point of view seems seamless. With many looking to the past, as just a dream. And now waking up to a new reality. The Saudi Arabia of MBS.
What do you think of Mohamed Bin Salman also known globally as MBS, and his reforms?
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