Reuters AlertNet Lite - Saudi crown prince in Morocco after U.S. tests

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Saudi crown prince in Morocco after U.S. tests

09 Jan 2009 22:33:13 GMT
Source: Reuters

RIYADH, Jan 10 (Reuters) - Saudi Crown Prince Sultan bin Abdul-Aziz arrived in Morocco on Friday, the state news agency said, after spending over a month in the United States which he visited for medical tests.

The Saudi Press Agency (SPA) said the prince, also Saudi Defence Minister, was met by his brother, Interior Minister Prince Nayef, and other princes. He was accompanied from the United States by his brother, Prince Salman, the governor of Riyadh.

Saudi media said on Nov. 23 the prince, thought to be 84, left for the United States for "some medical tests". No more details have been made available.

The prince arrived in the Moroccan resort of Agadir, where Saudi royals often vacation. SPA did not say how long he would spend in Morocco.

Prince Sultan had an intestinal cyst removed in Saudi Arabia in 2005 and he visited the Swiss city of Geneva in April 2008 for what were described as routine medical tests.

Saudi Arabia is an absolute monarchy with no elected parliament. It is the world's largest oil exporter and a traditional lynchpin of U.S. power in the Middle East.

Islamists linked to al Qaeda launched a failed campaign of violence to destabilise the ruling family from 2003 to 2006.

King Abdullah, one year older than the Crown Prince, set up an "allegiance council" of sons and grandsons of the kingdom's founder to vote on future kings and their heirs.

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