The King Is Dead, Long Live The King
King Fahd bin Abdul Aziz, the son of King Abdul Aziz bin Abdul Rahman al Saud, the founder of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, has died.
Former Crown Prince Abdullah bin Abdul Aziz has become King and has chosen his half-brother, Prince Sultan bin Abdul Aziz, as Crown Prince.
The since the death of Abdul Aziz, the kingdom has passed to his sons: Abdul Aziz [1932-1953], Saud [1953-1964], Faisal [1964-1975], Khalid [1975-1982], Fahd [1982-2005], and Abdullah [2005-].
At least the transition wasn’t the result of an assassination, as has happened in the past, but I wouldn’t expect any move towards liberalizing political life in the kingdom.