  
| 
| ||||||||||||
Clerics vow loyalty to Saudi king
 Britain's Prince Charles, right, chats to Abdullah at ceremony Wednesday. RELATEDYOUR E-MAIL ALERTSRIYADH, Saudi Arabia -- Top clerics, tribal chiefs and Saudi officials have pledged allegiance to King Abdullah in a traditional Islamic investiture ceremony that bestows his legitimacy. The day after world leaders joined ordinary Saudi citizens in paying their last respects to King Fahd, who died on Monday, prominent figures gathered at a royal palace in Riyadh to swear allegiance to King Abdullah and new Crown Prince Sultan. Before Wednesday's ceremony, Abdullah, the kingdom's de facto ruler for several years during his half-brother's ill health, received Britain's Prince Charles and other Western dignitaries. Abdullah, who is at least 80, sat chatting with Charles, who offered his condolences for the death of King Fahd and congratulated Abdullah on his ascension to the throne, The Associated Press reported. Former Saudi ambassador to Washington Prince Bandar sat nearby translating. Sweden's King Carl XVI Gustaf, the Swiss president and other Western dignitaries, who could not attend Tuesday's funeral that was closed to non-Muslims, also met the new Saudi king. U.S. Vice President Dick Cheney and former President George Bush were also heading to the kingdom, the White House announced, and were expected to meet Abdullah later Wednesday. Bush, the current president's father, dispatched U.S. troops to defend Saudi Arabia and push Iraqi troops out of Kuwait in the 1991 Persian Gulf War. The elder Bush and Cheney, who served as defense secretary during the conflict, will be joined on the delegation by former Secretary of State Colin Powell, who was chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff during that war. U.S. President George W. Bush has promised to continue a "close partnership" with Saudi Arabia under the leadership of Abdullah. On Tuesday, the body of King Fahd was buried in an unmarked grave in a desert cemetery in keeping with Saudi Arabia's austere Islamic tradition. The private ceremony in Riyadh took place after prayers at the Imam Turki bin Abdullah mosque where Fahd's body, draped in a brown robe, was carried by his sons on a wooden plank. Mourners carried bright umbrellas to shield them from the sun at the al-Oud cemetery where small uninscribed stones mark the graves. Fahd's body had been driven in an ambulance from the mosque where a crowd of thousands, including his successor, Abdullah, paid their respects. The mourners stood, raised their arms and chanted "Allahu akbar," or "God is great" during a two-minute prayer. Security was tight in the capital for the ceremonies, with large crowds of ordinary Saudis participating alongside monarchs, presidents and other dignitaries from the Arab world and other Islamic nations. The leaders of Syria, Pakistan and other Muslim states also attended. Saudi flags, emblazoned with "There is no God but Allah", were not lowered as this is deemed blasphemous. Saudi officials say Abdullah, who has run day-to-day affairs since Fahd suffered a stroke in 1995, would maintain the Gulf state's oil policy and close alliance with the West. Fahd, whose exact age was not known but was believed to be between 82 and 84, was the fifth ruler of the nation founded in 1932 by his father, Abdul Aziz Ibn Saud. His 23-year reign was marked by unprecedented prosperity, but his close ties with the United States stirred the passions of Islamic militants. Saudi police regularly clash with gunmen linked to the al Qaeda terrorist network, and a spate of attacks in the past two years have targeted Westerners who worked in the oil industry or helped train and equip the kingdom's armed forces. It was Fahd's decision to allow U.S. forces to be based out of Saudi Arabia during the 1991 Gulf War against Iraq that outraged Islamic fundamentalists, among them al Qaeda founder Osama bin Laden, who criticized his homeland for allowing "infidels" to attack another Arab country from its soil. Fifteen of the 19 suicide hijackers who carried out al Qaeda's September 11, 2001, attacks on New York and Washington were from Saudi Arabia, further straining ties. Rihab Massoud, the Saudi charge d'affaires in Washington, acknowledged the "challenge" posed by the attacks in his remarks. But he said he expected Saudi relations with the United States "to continue and to grow" under Abdullah, who was a guest at President Bush's Crawford, Texas, ranch earlier this year. "Saudi Arabia will not stand for an evil cult using the Islamic faith as an excuse for mass violence," Massoud said. "We stand shoulder to shoulder with all nations as strong allies." Copyright 2005 CNN. All rights reserved.This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Associated Press contributed to this report. 
|
| ||||||||||||
| © 2007 Cable News Network. A Time Warner Company. All Rights Reserved. Terms under which this service is provided to you. Read our privacy guidelines. Contact us. Site Map. |
 |
|
External sites open in new window; not endorsed by CNN.com
Pay service with live and archived video. 
