Saudi King Fahd dead

CNN:

Saudi Arabia's King Fahd -- whose reign was marked by unprecedented prosperity, but whose close ties with the United States stirred the passions of Islamic militants -- has died, Saudi Arabia's information minister announced Monday. His exact age remains uncertain -- believed to be between 82 and 84. A source told CNN's Nic Robertson that Fahd died Sunday evening. His burial is scheduled for Tuesday at 3 p.m. (8 a.m. EDT) in Riyadh. The former Crown Prince Abdullah, Fahd's half brother, has been named the new Saudi king and Defense Minister Prince Sultan has replaced Abdullah as crown prince.

As I have mentioned before, this could get very interesting, in the Chinese Proverb sense. There is a cloak-and-dagger civil war going on in Saudi Arabia between the more or less pro-West faction led by Prince Abdullah and the more fundamentalist faction led by Prince Nayef, the interior minister. There is a chance that this struggle will emerge from the shadows. If it does, things will get very messy and if Saudi Oil supplies are disrupted, messy won't do the situation justice. I don't expect this to happen, although I wouldn't be surprised is the hidden war does heat up some. Look for more terror attacks in Saudi in the near future.