Surprising Saudi Rises as a Prince Among Princes
But scholars say the accumulation of so much responsibility in the hands of one branch of the family — to say nothing of one young prince — breaks with a system of intrafamily power sharing put in place at the founding of the modern Saudi state by King Abdul Aziz al Saud eight decades ago. It ended decades of sometimes violent infighting and has helped preserve family unity ever since.
.. But King Salman upended that. He made Prince Mohammed the first chief of his royal court and absorbed the court of the crown prince into his own. He removed the state oil company from the oil ministry and put it under Prince Mohammed, who was also handed control of a newly created economic policy council and the Defense Ministry. (King Salman had been defense minister.)
.. He is a fan of iPhones and other Apple products. And he developed an early and abiding love of Japan, which remains his favorite country, a close associate said.