Saudi dismisses rumours of prince’s death

Saudi officials have denied media reports that Prince Abdulaziz bin Fahd died while resisting arrests as part of the kingdom’s anti-corruption drive.

A government statement confirmed that he is “alive and well”.

“There is no truth whatsoever to rumours circulating in media concerning Prince Abdulaziz bin Fahd,” an information ministry spokesman sai

Media reports had claimed that 44-year-old Prince Abdulaziz, the son of the late King Fahd, was shot dead by authorities who were trying to arrest him.

Former FBI special agent Ali H Soufan also confirmed the news on Twitter on Sunday.

Abdul Aziz is confirmed dead. He was 44 years old. Earlier, Mansour son of the former crown prince Muqrin was also declared dead. https://t.co/IsUyU896o4

— Ali H. Soufan (@Ali_H_Soufan) November 5, 2017

However, on Wednesday, he also tweeted that the information ministry had denied the news.

KSA Ministry of Information denies "rumours circulating in media concerning Prince Abdul Aziz bin Fahd," claiming he is "alive and well."

— Ali H. Soufan (@Ali_H_Soufan) November 7, 2017

Several members of the Saudi royal family, ex-ministers and businessmen have been detained in Saudi Arabia since the weekend as part of the government’s anti-graft initiative.

They face allegations of money laundering, bribery, extortion and exploiting public office for personal gain.

While the government has not publicly disclosed the names of those detained, they are reported to include billionaire Prince Alwaleed bin Talal, chairman of Kingdom Holding, Nasser bin Aqeel al-Tayyar, founder of Al Tayyar Travel, and Amr al-Dabbagh, chairman of Red Sea International.

On Wednesday, sources told Reuters that authorities have made further arrests as part of the probe.

Read more: Saudi makes further arrests in corruption probe – sources