A new documentary on the BBC reveals a stunning claim — that a Saudi prince forged his father’s signature so his country could launch an invasion into Yemen.
Many people believe that when Saudi Arabia got involved in the Yemeni Civil War back in 2015, it was part of a larger proxy war with Iran. In the 10 years that the conflict has been going on, hundreds of thousands of people have been killed, and millions of people are close to starvation.
But, now, a former adviser in Saudi Arabia says that Mohammed bin Salman, known as MBC, forged the signature of his father so that troops could be sent there.
Saad Al-Jabri, who served as an advisor to the country’s former heir Muhammad bin Nayef (MBN), made the claim in a new documentary called “The Kingdom: The World’s Most Powerful Prince.”
MBN served as the Saudi Arabian heir from 2015 through 2017. That’s when King Salman appointed his son MBS to succeed him.
According to Al-Jabri, MBC didn’t want to send the troops in as part of the Yemeni Civil War. As he said on the documentary:
“We started the war in March [2015] and MBS was pushing towards ground intervention. MBN — who was crown prince — said no. Our army was not tested and we do not think that they will do a good job.
“So, MBC issued a decree by the King to prevent any ground interventions. Later on, we were surprised that there was a royal decree to allow the ground interventions.”
While King Salman held the authority to send in the troops, Al-Jabri claimed on the documentary that MBS was the one to sign the decree.
He said that his source on the matter is “credible and reliable.” As Al-Jabri explained:
“We heard from some people around MBS that he forged a signature for his dad for that royal decree.”
Al-Jabri fled Saudi Arabia in 2017 and now lives in exile in Canada. He’s been a fierce critic of Saudi Arabia and MBS in particular, and is the most senior official to have left the country.
The former adviser even says that the Saudi government tried to assassinate him in the past.
Before he left the country, Al-Jabri served the state for 40 years, rising all the way to the rank of major-general. Both MI6 and the CIA have credited him with foiling terrorist plots by Al Qaeda in the past, which saved potentially thousands of people’s lives.
Sir John Sawers, a former chief of MI6, appeared in the documentary and said he wasn’t sure whether MBS forged the signature. But, he added:
“It is clear that this was MBS’ decision to intervene militarily in Yemen. It wasn’t his father’s decision, although his father was carried along with it.”
The United Nations has estimated that 377,000 civilians have been killed in the Yemeni Civil War, with another 4.5 million civilians displaced.