The decision of the Saudi King Salman bin Abdulaziz in April 2015 to appoint Prince Muhammad bin Nayef as crown prince was only the beginning of the end of the man, who until yesterday was described as "strong."

A little more than two years after this appointment, a decision was issued in June 2017 to isolate Muhammad bin Nayef and replace him with Prince Muhammad bin Salman, the king's son, in a move that observers confirmed at the time that paving the way towards the latter's tightening grip on the reins of power in the Kingdom.

House arrest and detention

Matters did not stop at the limits of deposing Muhammad bin Nayef, who also held the post of Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Interior with the mandate of the Covenant, but rather extended him to house arrest in his palace in Jeddah, and prevented him from traveling, according to a report issued by the New York Times.

Last March, Saudi authorities arrested 3 members of the royal family: the brother of King Salman Prince Ahmed bin Abdulaziz, his son Prince Nayef bin Ahmed bin Abdul Aziz, and Prince Muhammad bin Nayef, along with a number of military and security leaders, on charges of masterminding an attempt. A coup in preparation for the overthrow of the Crown Prince, according to what he leaked of information and leaks.

life sentence

"With this purge, there is no longer a competitor to prevent the crown prince from reaching the throne," a Western official at the time told AFP.

In turn, the American Wall Street Journal reported that the two princes Ahmed bin Abdulaziz and Muhammad bin Nayef, who were in the past candidates for the throne, face a life sentence, up to the possibility of execution.

Commenting on these arrests as well, said Pika Wasser, political analyst at the Rand Corporation for Studies in the United States. "Prince Muhammad (Bin Salman) has become more aggressive. He previously removed any threat to his rise, and imprisoned or killed critics of his authority without any consequences."

"This is an additional step to strengthen his power, and a message to everyone, including members of the royal family, not to stand in his way."

According to Western reports, Prince Muhammad bin Salman has strengthened his influence and grip on power by arresting prominent clerics and activists, as well as influential princes and businessmen.

Muhammad bin Salman is the de facto leader of the country, because he controls the main joints of government from defense to economics, and he is also known for his desire to erase the effects of any internal opposition before he officially reached the throne.

False accusations

In what appears to be the latest chapters targeting and liquidating Muhammad bin Nayef’s political - and possibly physical - through a judicial decision, the American Washington Post revealed yesterday - quoting Saudi and American sources - that the Saudi Crown Prince's Anti-Corruption Committee is about to finish a detailed investigation into allegations of corruption And betrayal of Muhammad bin Nayef.

The newspaper reported that the Anti-Corruption Commission is preparing to charge the Crown Prince and the former Minister of Interior with seizing $ 15 billion while he was running anti-terrorism programs in the Ministry of Interior, through a network of companies and private accounts.

The newspaper quoted - for an unnamed private Saudi source - that the investigators called on Muhammad bin Nayef to pay $ 15 billion they claim he took over.

The committee says that Muhammad bin Nayef illegally transferred the said funds through bogus companies and private accounts, but the newspaper indicated - in return - that documents it had seen from people close to Muhammad bin Nayef revealed that the accusations against him were false.

Many tweets and activists interacted with the report of the American Washington Post about the Saudi Crown Prince's Anti-Corruption Committee and allegations of corruption and treason expected to be sent to Prince Mohammed bin Nayef, through a series of tweets on Twitter.

Canadian-based political activist Muhammad al-Otaibi saw that Muhammad bin Salman was trying to "burn the card" of Muhammad bin Nayef as an alternative, and distort his image through the Western media, as he leaked to the Washington Post news of his trial on charges of financial corruption.

For his part, the songwriter Turki Al-Shalhoub said, "There are many important and dangerous secrets about Muhammad bin Salman and the Saudi regime that will be revealed during the next few days."

In fact, it was not only Muhammad bin Nayef who faced such pressures and harassment among the ruling family. The Saudi authorities had previously launched a campaign of arrests in 2017 for dozens of symbols of the ruling family, in addition to ministers and businessmen, and detained them all at the Ritz-Carlton Hotel in the capital Riyadh, on the orders of the Saudi crown prince, before accusing - at a later time - charges of corruption and graft. For a large number of them, financial settlements have been reached with each other.

American elections

Some analysts and observers believe that Mohammed bin Salman is trying to completely eliminate every possible internal opposition, particularly with the approaching American elections, which seem to be not in the interest of his ally and his biggest supporter, the current US President Donald Trump, at least according to recent opinion polls, although he does not. Anything can be said for now.

One of the major concerns of the Saudi crown prince is that the "reformist" image he tried to market about himself in the western circles was severely damaged after the killing of the Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi inside his country's consulate in Istanbul, Turkey in October 2018, which sparked a storm of criticism. And wide international and legal convictions.

Earlier, Michael Stephens (from the Royal Center for Research Services Center) said in remarks to the BBC that "after (Salman) survived an international discontent that followed the assassination of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi inside the Saudi consulate in Istanbul in 2018, it did not become He has nothing to fear. "

"The White House - led by Trump - supported Muhammad bin Salman to the fullest extent, and Britain and France were somewhat opposed, yet they continued to deal with Riyadh, and Russia and China had absolutely no interest."

The puzzle of Saad al-Jabri

Analysts believe that the increased pressure on Prince Muhammad bin Nayef may be related in one way or another to the mystery of prominent intelligence man Saad al-Jabri, who is very close to the isolated crown prince.

The family of al-Jabri (a former intelligence officer) says that Mohammed bin Salman has in recent months increased pressure on his relatives, including the arrest of his two adult sons, to try to force him to return to the kingdom from his current exile in Canada.

Sources familiar with this file said that the attention of the Crown Prince is focused on documents available for Al-Jabri that contain information described as very sensitive.

Al-Jabri's family also reported that Muhammad bin Salman believed he could use the documents in Al-Jabri's possession against his current competitors on the throne. She added that he was also afraid that these documents would include additional information that he and his father, the King, would touch.

Two informed sources and a former regional security official said that the documents contain information about Prince Mohammed bin Nayef's assets and property abroad, which could benefit Muhammad bin Salman in pressuring his predecessor.

There are also sensitive files available to Al-Jabri related to the financial dealings of senior members of the ruling family, including King Salman and his son, the Crown Prince.

Al-Jabri has lived in Canada since 2017, and served as Minister of State. He was a senior officer in the Saudi Interior, an expert on artificial intelligence, and he played key roles in the kingdom's battle against al-Qaeda and its security coordination with the United States of America.

However, he did not feel safe in America under the administration of President Donald Trump, for fear that he would be handed over to the Saudi crown prince, which prompted him to leave it in 2017, giving him the face of Canada.