RIYADH // Vice President, Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai Skeikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum and Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces, led a high-level delegation to Riyadh on Saturday, as world leaders headed for the Saudi capital to pay their respects following the death of King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz Al Saud.
French president Francois Hollande, Afghanistan’s president Ashraf Ghani and Spain’s King Felipe VI were among those to land at a Riyadh military base, with British prime minister David Cameron and Prince Charles also expected to fly in.
The White House announced US president Barack Obama would be arriving on Tuesday as world leaders praised the late king as a key mediator between Muslims and the West.
Since King Abdullah took the throne in 2005, Saudi Arabia has been a major Arab ally of Washington’s and last year joined a US-led coalition carrying out air strikes against ISIL.
Other dignitaries arrived in Saudi Arabia on Saturday, including Iranian foreign minister Mohammad Javad Zarif in a rare visit to the regional rival. President Ali Bongo Ondimba of Gabon and Indonesian vice-president Jusuf Kalla also flew in to offer their condolences.
On Friday, Egypt had declared seven days of official mourning for King Abdullah and sent its prime minister, Ibrahim Mahlab, to attend his funeral the same day.
Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Sudanese president Omar Al Bashir and Pakistani prime minister Nawaz Sharif also attended the traditionally simple funeral at Riyadh’s Imam Turki bin Abdullah mosque, with Ethiopian prime minister Hailemariam Desalegn also present.
After the funeral, Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas and Malaysian prime minister Najib Razak arrived in Saudi Arabia to pay their respects, as did Iraqi president Fuad Masum.
Mr Masum had met with the Saudi king last November, helping to repair long-strained relations between the neighbours.
King Abdullah died on Friday at the age of about 90 after being hospitalised with pneumonia.
He’s seen as a cautious reformer who led his country through a turbulent decade in a region shaken by the Arab Sring uprisings and religious extremism.
Campaigners have criticised his rights record, however, and urged the new monarch, King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, to do more to protect freedom of speech and women’s rights.
On Friday evening, hundreds of Saudis queued to enter a royal palace where they rubbed cheeks with, and kissed the hands of their new leaders, in a symbolic pledge of allegiance.
Mourning ceremonies were planned for Saturday and Sunday evenings at another palace, official media said.
Mr Obama paid tribute to King Abdullah as a “valued” ally, with the US State Department indicating that cooperation between Washington and Riyadh would continue.
King Salman pledged to keep the conservative Muslim kingdom on a steady course and moved to cement his hold on power.
In his first public statement as king, the 79-year-old vowed to “remain, with God’s strength, attached to the straight path that this state has walked since its establishment”.
He called for “unity and solidarity” among Muslims and vowed to work in “the defence of the causes of our nation”.
Since the death of the kingdom’s founder King Abdul Aziz bin Saud in 1953, the throne has passed systematically from one of his sons to another, leading to uncertainty over Saudi Arabia’s transition to the next generation of royals.
Moving to alleviate these concerns, King Salman named his nephew, Interior Minister Prince Mohammed bin Nayef, 55, as second-in-line to the throne behind Crown Prince Moqren, 69.
That helps to solidify control by his Sudayri branch of the royal family.
King Salman also appointed one of his own sons, Prince Mohammed, as the country’s defence minister.
Meanwhile, Ali Al Naimi remains the kingdom’s oil minister, with analysts predicting little change in this area.
“I expect and hope that they will continue to be a stabilisation factor in the oil markets,” said the International Energy Agency’s chief economist, Fatih Birol.
As the top producer in Opec, Saudi Arabia has been the driving force behind the cartel’s refusal to cut output in an effort to increase oil prices, which have fallen by more than 50 per cent since June.
In the key areas of foreign and energy policy, King Salman is widely expected to follow closely in the former king’s footsteps, as well as in making moderate reforms.
Wary of the rising influence of extremist movements, Saudi Arabia has been a generous supporter of Egyptian leader Abdel Fattah Al Sisi since the army ousted Mohammed Morsi of the Muslim Brotherhood.
It has also played a key role in supporting opposition to Syria’s President Bashar Al Assad, and will allow US troops to use its territory to train rebel fighters.
Domestically, King Abdullah pushed through cautious changes, challenging conservatives with such moves as including women in the advisory Shura Council.
He promoted economic development and oversaw accession to the World Trade Organisation, tapping into massive oil wealth to build new cities, universities and railways.
But the kingdom is still strongly criticised for a dismal human rights record, including the imprisonment and flogging of dissidents. It is also the only country in the world that does not allow women to drive.
* Agence France-Presse
