Five sources linked to the royal family in Saudi Arabia said that the repercussions of the disappearance of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi were so great that King Salman bin Abdul Aziz felt that he should intervene in the matter and that he began to consider the powers granted to Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.
On Thursday, October 11, the king dispatched his closest aide, Prince Khaled al-Faisal, the emir of the Mecca region, to Istanbul in an attempt to defuse the crisis.
During Prince Khalid's visit, Turkey and Saudi Arabia agreed to form a joint working group to investigate Khashoggi's disappearance. Subsequently, the King ordered the Attorney General to open an investigation based on the findings of the group.
A Saudi source linked to government circles said Prince Khalid was chosen as one of the most important and high-ranking family members, a personal adviser to the king and his right arm, with strong ties and friendship with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
King intervenes to manage the crisis
A Saudi businessman who lives abroad but has close ties with the royal circles said King Salman had confirmed his authority in running this issue since the meeting between Prince Khalid and Erdogan.
Two sources familiar with the royal court said the king - who handed over the kingdom's daily affairs to his son - was not at first aware of the magnitude of the crisis.
The source added that this was partly because the Crown Prince's aides were directing the king to the country's positive news on Saudi TV channels, but that changed as the crisis grew.
One of the five sources said that "even if Mohammed bin Salman wants to withhold this from the king, he can not because Khashoggi's disappearance is reported on all the Arab and Saudi television channels that the king is watching."
The source added that the king began asking his aides and his crown prince, who had to tell him, and asked him to intervene when Khashoggi's case became a global crisis.
Since King Salman's ascension to the throne in January 2015, his young son has been given increasing powers to run the kingdom. However, the five sources said the King's recent intervention reflects growing uneasiness among some members of the Royal Court and the Allegiance Authority about the eligibility of Ibn Salman to rule, That he had marginalized the senior members of the ruling family, and tightened his grip on the security services and intelligence.
Saudi Arabia has repeatedly denied any role in Khashoggi's disappearance, but well-informed sources at the royal court said the US response had contributed to the King's intervention.
Error estimating the crisis
Another source said that when the situation got out of control, and there was a fuss in the United States, the Crown Prince told his father that there was a problem, and that they have to face it. The source explained that Mohammed bin Salman and his aides initially thought that their management of the crisis will succeed, but " Estimate their implications ".
The sources explained that before the intervention of the king, the Saudi authorities were acting with a kind of defiance, threatening revenge and moving more against the United States and others if sanctions were imposed as a result of Khashoggi's disappearance, but the tone changed after the intervention of the king, according to one source.
Several sources close to the royal family said King Salman was no longer aware of the decisions made by the crown prince. One source said King Salman was "living in an artificial bubble".
However, the source said that the king's advisers were frustrated in the recent period, and began to warn him of the risk of leaving the powers of the Crown Prince without an officer, the source added that "people around him began to ask him to pay attention to what is happening."