On the death of a king
After a long illness, King Fahd bin Abdul-Aziz of Saudi Arabia has died. He was one of the last few of the old guard of Arab leaders, and a kind of ceremonial head of the Arab and Islamic world, someone who himself could not be criticised even though his regime was frowned upon for its poor human rights record, spreading extremist Wahhabi ideology and allowing US troops to continue to remain on Saudi soil.
King Fahd's reign saw Saudi Arabia solidify its newfound status as an economic giant in the region, and oil revenues continued to be poured into massive development projects, including the largest ever expansion of Islam's two holiest sites, the mosques in Mecca and Medina.
The late king can hardly be said to have improved his people's (especially women's) civil and political rights, although in terms of the social and economic rights Saudis were at one point the envy of the world. He did keep the Arabian Peninsula generally stable during turbulent times like the Iranian Revolution in 1979, the Iraq-Iran War of the 1980s, Iraq's invasion of Kuwait and the Gulf War in 1990-91, and the rise of Islamist terorrism since then. The king strategically maintained close ties with the United States and Britain, guaranteeing US protection from Saddam Hussein during the first Gulf War.
King Fahd's legacy will be mixed, but at this time, according to Muslim tradition, I will refrain from criticism and pray for the soul of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques.
King Fahd's reign saw Saudi Arabia solidify its newfound status as an economic giant in the region, and oil revenues continued to be poured into massive development projects, including the largest ever expansion of Islam's two holiest sites, the mosques in Mecca and Medina.
The late king can hardly be said to have improved his people's (especially women's) civil and political rights, although in terms of the social and economic rights Saudis were at one point the envy of the world. He did keep the Arabian Peninsula generally stable during turbulent times like the Iranian Revolution in 1979, the Iraq-Iran War of the 1980s, Iraq's invasion of Kuwait and the Gulf War in 1990-91, and the rise of Islamist terorrism since then. The king strategically maintained close ties with the United States and Britain, guaranteeing US protection from Saddam Hussein during the first Gulf War.
King Fahd's legacy will be mixed, but at this time, according to Muslim tradition, I will refrain from criticism and pray for the soul of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques.
رحم الله خادم الحرمين الشريفين الملك فهد بن عبد العزيز طيب الله ثراه
وإنا لله وإنا إليه راجعون
Updated 9:45 PM: A quote from King Fahd from a bugged telephone conversation:
“When we were poor, when we rode donkeys and had difficulty finding a few dates to eat, no one asked about us. They only acknowledge us now because we have money.” (From The Times Online obituary).
“When we were poor, when we rode donkeys and had difficulty finding a few dates to eat, no one asked about us. They only acknowledge us now because we have money.” (From The Times Online obituary).
No comments:
Post a Comment