The American Daily Beast quoted a source close to the ruling family in Saudi Arabia as saying that the lawyer of the former Saudi crown prince, Muhammad bin Nayef, inserted public opinion into his arrest case by making statements to the Financial Times; It is an unusual tactic by the Prince's family.
The source said that lawyers will not speak to newspapers without the approval of Muhammad bin Nayef or his family, and that resorting to the option of speaking to public opinion means that there is a real danger threatening the life of Prince Muhammad bin Nayef.
The American Financial Times newspaper quoted Ibn Nayef's lawyer as deeply concerned about his fate, months after his arrest on the order of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.
The lawyers indicated that Ibn Nayef is prevented from receiving family visits, and nothing is known about his whereabouts, and that his calls may be monitored.
Lawyers for the former Saudi crown prince, Prince Muhammad bin Nayef, expressed their growing concern about his health, and said that his private doctor was not allowed to visit him, and that his whereabouts are still unknown five months after his arrest.
The newspaper quoted the legal team - which represents Ibn Nayef and asked not to reveal his identity due to the sensitivity of the file - as saying that the family of Ibn Nayef had not been allowed to visit him since his arrest with his uncle Prince Ahmed bin Abdulaziz last March.
The lawyers said that the family does not know where he is being held, and that “all calls with him are fake, and this is a dangerous situation,” adding that no one can see him (although) he and his uncle, Prince Ahmed bin Abdulaziz, have not been charged.
The Saudi authorities arrested Muhammad bin Nayef, his uncle and cousin Prince Nayef bin Ahmed, while they were on a hunting trip last March, before releasing the latter this month, according to his lawyer.
Prince Ahmed bin Abdulaziz and Muhammad bin Nayef, who were in the past candidates to take the throne, are rivals to the crown prince of Prince Mohammed bin Salman, the de facto ruler of the kingdom, whose rapid rise to power has destabilized the traditional succession process in Saudi Arabia, according to the newspaper.