Sultan bin Abdul Aziz Al Saud: The Saudi Crown Prince Died

The heir to the Saudi throne, Crown Prince Sultan bin Abdul Aziz Al Saud, died undergoing treatment for illness in New York. The death of the prince, who was in his 80s, opens questions about the succession in the critical, oil rich U.S. ally.

Sultan was the younger half brother of Saudi Arabia's King Abdullah, who is has also been ailing & underwent back surgery last week.

The most likely candidate to replace Sultan as Abdullah's successor is Prince Nayef, the powerful interior minister in charge of internal security forces, who is said to be closer to Islamic conservatives than the king. The king gave Nayef also his half brother the implicit nod in 2009 by naming him second deputy prime minister, traditionally the post of the second in line to the throne.

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