King Fahd declared dead
King Fahd of Saudi Arabia has been officially declared dead. His half-brother Abdullah has been named the new king and Defense Minister Prince Sultan has replaced Abdullah as crown prince. On the surface this smooth succession should guarantee stability, since Abdullah has been the de facto ruler since 1995 due to King Fahd's illness.
However, it is possible that one of the full brothers of Fahd - Salman, Sultan, or Nayef - might resent Abdullah accession, claiming that the king wished to be succeeded by one of them. They are all very powerful in the kingdom and are part of the "Sudayri Seven", all sons of the same mother of the Sudayri tribe.
Look out for internal power struggles as these will have an enormous impact on the war on terror. Al Qaeda might wish to increase and exploit these divisions if consensus on the succession is not reached immediately; terrorist attacks in the kingdom could increase, one of the factions might use (or let itself be used by) al Qaeda to undermine its opponents, and all talk of reform stifled.
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