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Riyadh:
Saudi crown prince Naif bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, who breathed his
last Saturday following a prolonged illness, was Sunday buried
after sunset prayers in the holy city of Makkah. He was 78.
King Abdullah, together with other worshippers, offered funeral
prayers for the crown prince at the Holy Mosque in Makkah,
reported the official Saudi Press Agency (SPA).
Pakistan Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani, Afghan President Hamid
Karzai, Jordan's King Abdullah II, Palestinian President Mahmoud
Abbas, Abu Dhabi's Crown Prince Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al
Nahyan, Supreme Military Council of Egypt chairman Field Marshal
Hussein Tantawi, and Arab League Secretary General Nabil Al-Arabi
were among the world leaders who arrived in Saudi Arabia for the
funeral ceremonies.
India was represented by Law Minister Salman Khurshid.
A statement from King Abdullah, published in SPA, said Prince Naif
died Saturday "outside the kingdom".
The 78-year-old crown prince was hospitalised in Geneva and had
left the country for medical tests late last month, BBC reported.
Saudi Arabia is expected to declare a period of mourning following
Prince Nayef's burial.
Prince Naif was also deputy prime minister and interior minister.
As the kingdom's interior minister since 1975, he led the
crackdown on Al Qaeda's offshoot in the country after the Sep 11,
2001 attacks in the US.
According to BBC, British Prime Minister David Cameron praised the
prince's "dedication" and US President Barack Obama focused on his
role in fighting terrorism.
In his message to King Abdullah, Indian Prime Minister Manmohan
Singh expressed his "profound sorrow and deep grief" and offered
India's "deepest condolences" over the sudden demise of the crown
prince.
"Prince Naif will always be remembered and admired for his
outstanding contribution towards the development of the Kingdom of
Saudi Arabia in many different fields," the prime minister said.
Naif was named crown prince last year succeeding Sultan bin Abdul
Aziz.
The succession in Saudi Arabia passes among the sons of former
King Abdul Aziz ibn Saud, who established the modern kingdom and
reigned from 1932 to 1953. Till date, five brothers have become
kings and about 20 are still alive.
The 88-year-old King Abdullah had a back operation last year.
Next in line is expected to be Prince Naif's brother, Prince
Salman, 76, who was appointed defence minister in November after
spending five decades as governor of Riyadh.
The new crown prince must be approved by the Allegiance Council, a
34-strong assembly of King Abdul Aziz's sons and some of his
grandchildren.
Committed to maintaining Saudi Arabia's conservative traditions
based on the Wahhabi doctrine of Islam, the crown prince was seen
to be more conservative than King Abdullah.
In 2001, Prince Naif, however, had supported a move to issue women
with their own identity cards, a decision which offered women more
freedom in many financial and legal transactions, BBC reported.
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