Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, also known as MBS, was born on August 31, 1985 to King Salman, and Princess Fahda bint Falah bin Sultan bin Hathleen, one of Salman's four wives.
MBS, as the millennial prince is known, was raised in a walled complex the size of a city block in Riyadh with his mother, five brothers and a staff of 50 servants, cooks, drivers and more. His father, who was then the governor of Riyadh, is one of six sons of former Saudi King Abdul-Aziz al Saud.
In 1932, after a series of civil wars, Abdul-Aziz united the kingdom under the House of Saud, one of the last remaining absolute monarchies.
MBS would later earn a bachelor's degree in law at King Saud University, where he was ranked one of the top 10 students. In 2009, after working in several firms and government positions, he was appointed special adviser to his father.
MBS would also found a non-profit group called the MiSK Foundation, which helps Saudi youth develop new businesses. In 2013, Forbes Middle East honored him as "Personality of the Year" for his work with MisK Foundation.
Source: Al Jazeera
In January 2015, MBS was appointed Saudi's defense minister and deputy crown prince by his father, who had just been elevated to King Salman.
One of the new defense minister's first moves was to crack down on Tehran, launching the Saudi-led coalition against the Iranian-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen through a military campaign known as Operation Decisive Storm.
The war in Yemen has since become one of the worst humanitarian disasters in the world, with thousands killed, and millions on the brink of starvation. The Saudi-led coalition has been repeatedly accused of carrying out unlawful airstrikes, while the Houthis have been accused of several human rights abuses as well, including unlawful detentions and using child soldiers.
Source: BBC
In April 2016, MBS, who also led the Saudi Council for Economic Affairs and Development, announced an ambitious initiative called Vision 2030, which sought to diversify and privatize the Saudi economy and make it less dependent on oil.
MBS also announced plans to create a $3 trillion wealth fund, partially by selling 5% of Aramco, as well as a number of social reforms, including allowing women to work more.
Source: Al Jazeera, BBC
King Salman had initially named Mohammed bin Nayef, bin Salman's cousin, as crown prince. But in June 2017, the monarch replaced bin Nayef with bin Salman, who has since sought to consolidate his power.
Source: BBC
In September 2017, in his new role of crown prince, MBS had more than 20 clerics and intellectuals critical of his new policies arrested over their supposed ties to foreign powers, such as the Muslim Brotherhood and Qatar.
A few months later, he launched a supposed anti-corruption purge that was largely seen as a consolidation of his own power, arresting 11 princes, four ministers and multiple powerful business leaders.
Source: Business Insider
At the same time, MBS has also initiated several social reforms aimed at modernizing the kingdom, including allowing women to drive and to attend sports matches.
Last week news broke that Saudi critic and journalist Jamal Khashoggi, who frequently wrote scathing columns that contradicted Prince Mohammed's image as a moderate reformer, had disappeared after entering the Saudi embassy in Istanbul.
MBS is now suspected of ordering the assassination of Khashoggi, who reportedly may have been killed and dismembered by 15 Saudis who flew to Istanbul and visited the consulate on the day of the journalist's disappearance.
US lawmakers and business leaders, including even the Trump administration, have now begun to distance themselves from Saudi Arabia over the alleged assassination.
