Grandsons gather to jostle for position of Saudi ruler

At stake is not just who will eventually succeed King Abdullah or his deputy Crown Prince Sultan, both in poor health and in their late eighties, but prime positions of power that control Saudi's vast wealth, social policies, influential Islamic clerics and military.

Abdullah flew to New York this week for medical treatment after a blood clot complicated a slipped spinal disc and Sultan rushed back from abroad where he was convalescing to manage the kingdom's affairs.

Since the death of Saudi Arabia's founder Abdul-Aziz Ibn Saud in 1953, the throne has passed to his sons, with Abdullah the sixth to rule, and two others, Sultan and interior minister Prince Nayef, at the front of the line to inherit.

The eventual transfer of power is meant to be decided by an Allegiance Council of the founder's remaining sons and grandsons that will approve future kings' nominations for crown prince. With only 20 sons left, many also in bad health or lacking the clout to move up, the leadership will have to select from among the dozens of Ibn Saud's grandsons.

As a result, senior princes appear to be more interested in promoting their sons than working out a new strategy for rule in a country that carries their family name, said London-based scholar Madawi al-Rasheed. "They don't seem ready to make bold decisions," Ms Rasheed said. "The council does not seem effective."

With both king and his crown prince in their eighties and frail, there is a good chance religious and social traditionalist Nayef, relatively younger at 76, could take over to run the country of 18 million.

A number of other sons and grandsons have returned in recent weeks. Riyadh governor Prince Salman - a full-brother of Nayef and Sultan - came back this week after an illness, as did Prince Turki bin Abdul-Aziz. Sultan's son Prince Bandar bin Sultan, former ambassador in Washington, returned in October.

"They don't come back for nothing," said one diplomat. "It seems the various branches of the family want everyone back as the family finds consensus about important questions."

Before leaving, the king last week handed control of the National Guard, a Bedouin corps that handles domestic security, to his son Mitab - a move which could set off a spate of similar moves by princes keen to preserve their fiefdoms.

Since its foundation in 1932, the main wings of the al-Saud family maintained a fine balance with the clerics of an austere Sunni Islam version to co-rule the kingdom.

Although it has a history of finding a consensus, the family faces the challenge of sharing power once only grandsons remain, a complex issue given the number of ambitious royals.

Among the most influential are the Sudairis, a group of senior full-brothers that include Nayef. Saudi experts have long seen rifts between the Sudairis and their half-brother Abdullah.

"The main schism in the royal family remains the division between the so-called Sudairi sons of Ibn Saud and their half-brothers," said Simon Henderson, a US-based author of studies on Saudi succession.

Even as backroom rivalries play out, some Saudi-based analysts say the al-Saud family will make sure any succession will be orderly and preserve their grip on power.

"I don't see any sign of dispute over succession - at least at this point," said Saudi analyst Khaled al-Dakhil.