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The battle for power and influence in Iran appeared to take a gruesome turn on 19 June, with the as-yet-unexplained death of fugitive judge Gholamreza Mansouri in a Bucharest hotel. Mansouri was being tried in absentia in Tehran as part of a wider, politically-inspired corruption clampdown. He had been speaking to the Iranian embassy in Bucharest in an effort to agree a return, but those negotiations broke down. Tehran put in an extradition request via Interpol instead, but before that process could be completed Mansouri was dead.

Princess Hessa Bint Salman has been given a ten-month suspended sentence by a French court, after being convicted in absentia for her role in an assault on Ashraf Eid, who had been carrying out repair work at her Paris apartment in 2016. She was also given a fine of €10,000. The court heard that Eid was tied up, punched and kicked by the princess’s bodyguard Rani Saida after Eid had inadvertently taken a photo of her on his mobile phone. Hessa is expected to appeal against the verdict.

Despite all his efforts to project a more modern, tolerant and less corrupt image of Saudi royalty, unhelpful stories continue to buzz around Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman (MBS), in the process undermining his hopes of recasting the image of his country and its ruling dynasty. In the days leading up to his protracted visit to the United States, which began on 20 March, stories broke in the international media which take at least some of the sheen off his carefully-curated reformist image.

 There is mounting evidence of Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman (MBS)’s recent appreciation of diplomatic endeavours, which is apparent in the revelations of talks with Iran in Baghdad (GSN 1,124/17), renewed attempts to secure a peace deal in Yemen, signs of a reset of relations with Syria and Turkey and the Al-Ula agreement in January, which ended the Qatar boycott.

Deputy Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman (MBS) was in Doha on 12 June for a meeting with Emir Sheikh Tamim Bin Hamad Al-Thani. He was accompanied on his visit by minister of information and culture Adel Bin Zaid Al-Turaifi and minister of state Khalid Bin Abdelrahman Al-Essa, who until recently was deputy chief of the royal court. After talks, Emir Tamim hosted a dinner in MBS’ honour. MBS was greeted and seen off by the deputy emir of Qatar, Sheikh Abdullah Bin Hamad Al-Thani.

Ambassador to the United States Prince Khalid Bin Salman, Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman’s younger brother, arrived in Washington on 5 December. It was the first time he has returned to his post since some of the murkier details of the murder of Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi came to light. Prince Khalid has been accused by the newspaper’s editorial board of “an epic campaign of lies” to cover up the murder; it said his return was “a stunningly arrogant act”.

Deputy defence minister Prince Khalid Bin Salman was dispatched to Baghdad on 12 May for talks with President Barham Salih, Prime Minister Mustafa Kadhimi, Council of Representatives (parliament) speaker Mohammed Al-Halbosi and defence minister Jumah Enad Al-Jebori.

Emirati Sheikh Hazza Bin Sultan Bin Zayed Al-Nahyan has joined cryptocurrency venture IslamicCoin as a member of its advisory board. Hazza joins four other UAE royals who make up the current advisory board.

Emir Sheikh Tamim Bin Hamad Al-Thani made a short visit to the UAE on 17 March to meet some recently appointed officials. He held talks with UAE Crown Prince Sheikh Mohammed Bin Zayed Al-Nahyan (MBZ) in a meeting attended by new national security advisor Sheikh Tahnoun Bin Zayed Al-Nahyan, State Security Department chairman Sheikh Khalid Bin Mohammed Bin Zayed (MBZ’s son), deputy secretary-general of the Supreme National Security Council Ali Al-Shamsi (appointed 2014), Executive Affairs Authority chairman Khaldoon Al-Mubarak and undersecretary of MBZ’s diwan Mohammed Al-Mazroui.

Sheikh Khalid Bin Mohammed Bin Zayed Al-Nahyan has attempted to cement his status within the political arena and strengthen his profile among local citizens since he was named Abu Dhabi’s crown prince on 29 March, in a move which put the 41 year-old first in line to succeed his father, President Sheikh Mohammed Bin Zayed Al-Nahyan (MBZ). 

Khalid Al-Shamlan takes over the real estate and infrastructure file at the Abu Dhabi government’s investment fund.