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A Royal in Morocco: The Strange Case of Princess Fahda al-Hithlayn

rumors and innuendo, or cultural misunderstanding?

In common with other female members of the royal family, Fahda rarely appears in public, and like others of her generation, has a limited online presence. As head of the Fahda bint Falah al-Hithlayn Foundation, there exist a few photographs (profile features and official functions), but little is known otherwise. This is not unusual for the wives of kings and senior royals; in most cases no pictures are publicly available and often their very names, let alone more personal details, are a mystery. In fact, this is typical for Saudi society in general (at least for older generations), where women are expected to keep to the "private" sphere, and it would be considered rude to even mention the name of a man's wife.

Where Fahda's story differs, however, is that foreign intelligence agencies have suggested that she is being held "captive" by her ambitious son MbS. The reports first surfaced during the Obama administration, when in early 2016, U.S. officials are said to have intercepted communications in which MbS was discussing his efforts to keep his mother at a distance from the king, without Salman finding out. Purportedly, Fahda was being kept in a palace with two of her sisters. The news was elaborated in a series of 2018 reports, in which a number of current and former senior U.S. officials told NBC News that intelligence showed MbS had blocked Fahda from seeing his father, Salman, beginning about two years before, and was continuing to keep her away from him as the ambitious royal rapidly acquired power. Moreover, these officials said that MbS had placed his mother under house arrest at a palace without the king's knowledge.

The intelligence was reportedly based on a combination of human intelligence, intercepts and information shared with the U.S. from other countries. Fahda had, among other indications, stopped showing up at family weddings, funerals and holiday celebrations. For his part, MbS had invented constantly changing explanations of his mother's whereabouts over the years, such as that Fahda was out of the country receiving medical treatment, so Salman would not suspect it was his son who had been behind her continued absence. According to the assessment, MbS had taken action against his mother because he was concerned that she opposed his plans for a power grab that could divide the royal family and could use her influence with the king to prevent it.

What lent credence to the theory that the crown prince was concealing his mother from both Salman and the public was the character of MbS himself. American officials, aware of his ruthlessness, saw this as another example of his willingness to remove any perceived impediment, smoothing the way for his succession to the throne. Furthermore, Saudi sources confirmed that in fact MbS and his mother did have a falling out, largely because he was concerned she was trying to empower her family, and wanted to avoid a dynamic that had played out with a previous Saudi king, when the family of one of his Fahd's wives, Jawhara bint Ibrahim, became extremely powerful and wealthy, profiting from her marriage to the king.

Just as abruptly, however, Fahda has reappeared at family functions. Her sudden presence has not gone unnoticed, in light of the swirling rumors, but none dared ask her where she had been, or why. Had her constraints been loosened, as a reaction to the unsavory gossip? Has the supposed threat, either of blocking MbS and his ambition, or of enriching her siblings, passed?

The difficulty in knowing is compounded by the opacity of the royal family, and indeed Saudi society in general. The king's wives are rarely seen in public, and even asking after a man's wife is considered disrespectful. Against this backdrop, an absence such as Fahda's could easily go unnoticed for quite some time, but the dynamics of family life, and the domestic politics of the royals in particular, make the reality difficult to determine.

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