Bandar bin Sultan

Bandar bin Sultan
President of General Intelligence
In office 19 July 2012 – 15 April 2014
Predecessor Muqrin bin Abdulaziz
Successor Khalid bin Bandar Al Saud
Monarch King Abdullah
Secretary General of the National Security Council
In office 16 October 2005 – 29 January 2015
Predecessor Office established
Successor Office abolished
Monarch King Abdullah
King Salman
Saudi Ambassador to the United States
In office 24 October 1983 – 8 September 2005
Predecessor Faisal Al Hujailan
Successor Prince Turki Al Faisal
Monarch King Fahd
King Abdullah
Spouse Haifa bint Faisal
Full name
Bandar bin Sultan bin Abdulaziz Al Saud
House House of Saud
Father Prince Sultan bin Abdulaziz
Mother Khizaran
Born 2 March 1949
Ta'if

Bandar bin Sultan (Arabic: الأمير بندر بن سلطان بن عبدالعزيز آل سعود‎; born 2 March 1949) is a member of the House of Saud and was Saudi Arabia's ambassador to the United States from 1983 to 2005. From 2005 to 29 January 2015 he served as secretary general of the National Security Council, and was director general of the Saudi Intelligence Agency from 2012 to 2014. On 1 July 2014 he was appointed King Abdullah's special envoy which lasted until 29 January 2015.

Early life

Bandar was born officially on 2 March 1949 in Taif.[1] By his own account, and according to Western think tanks, his actual date of birth is later. He had reportedly altered his birthday (overstated his age) in order to enter the Royal Saudi Air Force while still a teenager.[2]

Bandar's mother, Khiziran, was a commoner from Asir Province, and the concubine of his father, Prince Sultan bin Abdulaziz. Both of Bandar's parents were very young at the time of his birth; indeed, Khiziran was hardly sixteen, and was working as a maid in the palace when she first came in contact with the Prince.[3] The royal family provided Khiziran with a generous monthly pension after Bandar was born, but told her to take her child and live with her own family. Bandar thus spent his early years in a non-royal milieu, living with his mother and aunt, and had little contact with his father until he was about eight years old.[3] By this time, the royal family relented and invited Khiziran to bring Bandar with her and live in the palace with Prince Sultan's mother, the recently widowed Hassa Al Sudairi, who was a powerful figure in her own right as the mother of the Sudairi Seven.[3]

Education

Bandar graduated from the Royal Air Force College Cranwell in 1968.[4] He received additional training at Maxwell Air Force Base and the Industrial College of the Armed Forces.[4] He is a trained pilot and has flown numerous fighter aircraft. Bandar's military career ended in 1977 after he crash-landed his jet and suffered a severe back injury.[3] Afterward, he received a master's degree in International Public Policy at the Johns Hopkins University Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies.[5]

Initial career

Prince Bandar as a younger man

Prince Bandar joined the Royal Saudi Air Force, and rose to the rank of lieutenant colonel.[6] His diplomatic career began in 1978 when he was appointed the King's personal envoy. He successfully lobbied the United States Congress to approve the sale of F-15s to Saudi Arabia. In the Oval Office, President Carter told him to win the support of California governor Ronald Reagan. He did and in exchange helped Carter win the support of South Dakota Democratic Senator James Abourezk for the Panama Canal treaty. Fahd made Bandar an emissary to Carter and granted him permission to act independently of the Saudi-U.S. ambassador.[3]

In 1982, King Fahd made him the military attache at the Saudi Embassy, a move which could have ended his diplomatic career. However, in 1983, Fahd appointed Bandar as Saudi Ambassador to the United States.[3]

Ambassador to the United States (1983–2005)

On 24 October 1983, Prince Bandar was appointed ambassador to the United States by King Fahd.[7] During his tenure as ambassador and, before that, the king's personal envoy to Washington, he dealt with five U.S. presidents, ten secretaries of state, eleven national security advisers, sixteen sessions of Congress, and the media.[8] He had extensive influence in the United States. At the pinnacle of his career, he served both "as the King's exclusive messenger and the White House's errand boy".[8] For over three decades, he was the face of the Saudi Arabia lobby.[8][9] The U.S. is widely seen as one of Saudi Arabia's most essential allies, but different members of the royal family feel different mixtures of trust and suspicion of the United States. Therefore Prince Bandar's intimate relationships with U.S. leaders and policy-makers are considered to be both the source of his power base in the kingdom, as well as the cause of suspicions within the royal family that he is too close to U.S. political figures.[10]

Reagan era

During the Reagan presidency, he secured the purchase of AWACs surveillance aircraft despite opposition from the American Israel Public Affairs Committee.[8] After the United States rejected an arms order, he arranged the delivery of intermediate-range nuclear-warhead-capable missiles from China.[8] This angered the Central Intelligence Agency and the United States Department of State.[8] He was exposed for his involvement in the Iran-Contra scandal. He had arranged $32 million in Saudi financing for the Nicaraguan Contras.[3] Nancy Reagan used him to relay messages to the Cabinet.[3]

Prince Bandar with G.W. Bush in 2002

Bush presidencies

Bandar has formed close relationships with several American presidents, notably George H.W. Bush and George W. Bush, the latter giving him the affectionate and controversial nickname "Bandar Bush".[11] His particularly close relationship with the Bush family was highlighted in Michael Moore's documentary Fahrenheit 9/11. He was reportedly so close to George H. W. Bush that he was often described as a member of the former president's family.[3][12] He advocated Saddam Hussein's overthrow in Iraq in March 2003.[13] He encouraged military action against Iraq and supported Dick Cheney's agenda for "The New Middle East", which called for pro-democracy programs in both Syria and Iran.[13] Additionally, Prince Bandar's children supposedly attended the same school where Cheney's grandchildren were enrolled.

Clinton era

Clinton, as governor of Arkansas, had asked him to help pay for the Middle East Studies Center at the University of Arkansas.[3] In the 1990s, he persuaded Libyan president Muammar Gaddafi to turn in two suspects allegedly involved in the 1988 bombing of Pan Am Flight 103. He privately described Gaddafi as "a Jerry Lewis trying to be a Churchill".[3]

Resignation

On 26 June 2005, Bandar submitted his resignation as ambassador to the United States for "personal reasons".[14][15] The official end date of his term was 8 September 2005.[16] Bandar bin Sultan returned to Saudi Arabia weeks prior to the death of King Fahd, upon which Bandar's father, Sultan bin Abdulaziz, became the nation's Crown Prince. It was rumored that Bandar's return was timed in order to secure a position in the new government.[17]

Prince Bandar was succeeded as ambassador by his cousin, Prince Turki Al Faisal.[1] Nevertheless even after leaving the ambassadorship, Bandar continued to maintain strong relationships within the Bush administration and to meet with high-ranking White House staff even after Prince Turki took over the post; Turki gave up the ambassador's job after only 18 months.[10]

Secretary General of National Security Council (2005–2015)

In October 2005, King Abdullah appointed Bandar bin Sultan as secretary-general of the newly created Saudi National Security Council.[18]

Prince Bandar visited Damascus and met president Bashar Assad in mid-November 2005.[19] He also secretly met with U.S. officials in 2006 after resigning as ambassador.[20] Seymore Hersh reported in 2007 in the New Yorker that as Saudi Arabia's national security adviser, Bandar bin Sultan continued to meet privately with both President George W. Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney. At that time Hersh described Bandar as a key architect of the Bush Administration policy in Iraq and the Middle East.[10]

On 25 January 2007, Saudi Arabia sent Prince Bandar to Iran for discussions on the crisis in Lebanon and the Kingdom even held talks with Hizballah leaders, whom he had invited for the annual pilgrimage to Mecca.[21] After tensions with Qatar over supplying rebel groups, Saudi Arabia (under Bandar's leadership of its Syria policy) switched its efforts from Turkey to Jordan in 2012, using its financial leverage over Jordan to develop training facilities there, with Bandar sending his half-brother and deputy Salman bin Sultan to oversee them.[22]

Prince Bandar's tenure as secretary general was extended for four years on 3 September 2009.[23] His term ended on 29 January 2015.[24] The office was also abolished on the same day.[25]

Disappearance and rumors

After the King renewed Bandar's post on the National Security Council for an additional 4-year term in September 2009, Bandar failed to make the customary public demonstration of his allegiance to the King.[26] This noticeable absence was followed by others: an avid fan of the Dallas Cowboys, Bandar did not appear in his customary seat—next to owner Jerry Jones in Jones's skybox—for the home opener of the new Cowboys Stadium.[26] In October 2009, he was not present in King Abdullah's delegation for the watershed Damascus visit.[26] Most strikingly, in December 2009, Prince Bandar was not present for the return of his father, Crown Prince Sultan, from Morocco.[26] After that event, journalists began to report on Bandar's disappearance, noting that his last appearance in public had been with King Abdullah in Jeddah on 10 December 2008.[26]

Hugh Miles of the London Review of Books reported rumors that Bandar was undergoing surgery at the Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore.[27] Bandar's lawyer denied these rumors;[26] he has no spokesman.[28]

Le Figaro's Middle East blog reported that Bandar had been in a hospital in France, and was recuperating in Morocco.[29]

Iran's Press TV reported that Bandar was under house arrest for an attempted coup.[27][30] Saudi opposition sources said he was in Dhaban Prison.[26] Some rumors alleged that his coup was exposed by Russian intelligence services because of his frequent trips to Moscow to encourage cooperation against Iran.[26]

In October 2010, Middle East analyst Simon Henderson reported in Foreign Policy that Prince Bandar had made his first public appearance in almost two years. Citing official Saudi media, Henderson reported that Bandar had been greeted at the airport by "a virtual who's who of Saudi political figures." Henderson noted that no explanation had been given for the Prince's whereabouts for the previous two years—the only detail was that he had returned "from abroad." Henderson and other analysts viewed this reemergence as a sign of Bandar's rehabilitation into the active politics of the kingdom.[31]

In what was perceived as a return to prominence, in March 2011, Bandar was sent to Pakistan, India, Malaysia, and China to gather support for Saudi Arabia's military intervention in Bahrain.[28][32] In April 2011, Bandar was present in meetings when U.S. Secretary of Defense Robert Gates visited King Abdullah and in a separate visit by National Security Advisor Tom Donilon.[32]

The other goal of his late March 2011 visit to Islamabad was to raise the prospect of a return engagement for the Pakistan Army. The goal was achieved and Pakistan quickly approved the proposal.[33] His visit to China during the same period resulted in the issuing of lucrative contracts in return for political support. Since China is not a friend of the Arab Spring, it is eager for Saudi oil and investment. Bandar secretly negotiated the first big Saudi-Chinese arms deal. Thus, Bandar was the Kingdoms's premier China expert.[33]

Director General of Saudi Intelligence Agency (2012–2014)

Bandar bin Sultan was appointed director general of Saudi Intelligence Agency on 19 July 2012 replacing Muqrin bin Abdulaziz.[16][34] Although no official reason for the appointment was provided,[35] the appointment occurred after growing tension between Sunnis and Shiites in the Eastern Province of Saudi Arabia.[36] It was also considered as a move of Saudi Arabia to display more aggressive foreign policy given the regional challenges that comes from Iran and Syria.[37] Prince Bandar is also a member of the Military Service Council.[38]

Prince Bandar organized the visit of Manaf Tlass, who defected from Syria on 6 July 2012, to Saudi Arabia in the last week of July 2012.[39]

In 2013 Prince Bandar said that the Saudis would "shift away" from the United States over Syrian and Iranian policy.[40]

According to a number of articles, Prince Bandar, allegedly confronted Vladimir Putin in a bid to break the deadlock over Syria. This included security of winter Olympics in Sochi if there is no accord. "I can give you a guarantee to protect the Winter Olympics next year. The Chechen groups that threaten the security of the games are controlled by us," he allegedly said.[41] Putin then rejected the proposal furiously by saying "we know that you have supported the Chechen terrorist groups for a decade. And that support, which you have frankly talked about just now, is completely incompatible with the common objectives of fighting global terrorism that you mentioned."[42]

Bandar had been tasked with managing Saudi policy in the Syrian civil war, but he was replaced in early 2014 by interior minister Prince Muhammad bin Nayef. Bandar took a confrontational tone with the United States and was called a "problem" privately by U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry. However, Bandar had also been struggling with poor health stemming from the 1977 plane crash, leading to speculation that this was why he was replaced.[43]

Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki reportedly complained about secret Saudi Arabian support for militant groups saying, "They are attacking Iraq, through Syria and in a direct way, and they announced war on Iraq, as they announced it on Syria, and unfortunately it is on a sectarian and political basis." [44]

Assassination rumors

In July 2012, the rumors of his assassination were reported by Voltaire Network[45] and DEBKAfile[46][47] and later published in Press TV[48] and Tehran Times.[49][50][51][52][53][54][55][56] This news was denied by Arab News[57] and the journalist David Ignatius.[58][59]

In August 2013 the Wall Street Journal reported that Bandar had been appointed to lead Saudi Arabia's efforts to topple Syrian President Bashar Assad and that the US Central Intelligence Agency considered this a sign of how serious Saudi Arabia was about this aim.[22] The Journal reported that In late 2012 Saudi intelligence, under Bandar's direction, began efforts to convince the US that the Assad government was using chemical weapons. Bandar was also described as "jetting from covert command centers near the Syrian front lines to the Élysée Palace in Paris and the Kremlin in Moscow, seeking to undermine the Assad regime."[22]

Removed as head of Intelligence Service

On 15 April 2014 Prince Bandar bin Sultan was removed from his position "at his own request" according to the announcement in the Saudi state media.[60][61] he remained as Secretary General of the National Security Council until it was abolished in January 2015.

Controversy

Bandar endured controversy over allegations in the book Plan of Attack by Bob Woodward that President George W. Bush informed him of the decision to invade Iraq ahead of Secretary of State Colin Powell.[62]

Bandar helped negotiate the 1985 Al Yamamah deal, a series of massive arms sales by the United Kingdom to Saudi Arabia worth GB£40 billion (US$80 billion), including the sale of more than 100 warplanes. After the deal was signed, British arms manufacturer British Aerospace (now BAE Systems) allegedly funnelled secret payments of at least GB£1 billion (US$2 billion) into two Saudi embassy accounts in Washington, in yearly instalments of up to GB£120 million (US$240 million) over at least 10 years. He allegedly took money for personal use out of the accounts, as the purpose of one of the accounts was to pay the operating expenses of his private Airbus A340. According to investigators, there was "no distinction between the accounts of the embassy, or official government accounts [...], and the accounts of the royal family." The payments were discovered during a Serious Fraud Office investigation, which was stopped in December 2006 by attorney general Lord Goldsmith.[63][64] In 2009, he hired Louis Freeh as his legal representative for the Al-Yamamah arms scandal.[65]

In the summer of 2013, after the U.S., UK and French officials accused Syria's Assad regime of using chemical weapons against its opponents, Syria, Russia and Iran, countered with assertions that the chemical weapons had actually been deployed by the Syrian rebels themselves in a "false flag" attack designed to bring international condemnation down on the Syrian government.

Prince Bandar became one focus of these accusations, in particular according to the findings of American news organisation Mint Press News reports of the Ghouta residents;[66]

Iranian media also asserted that Bandar was the source of these alleged weapons transfers.[67]

A court affidavit filed on 3 February 2015 claims that Zacarias Moussaoui served as a courier between Osama bin Laden and Turki bin Faisal Al Saud in the late 1990s, and that Turki introduced Moussaoui to Bandar.[68] The Saudi government continues to deny any involvement in the 9/11 plot, and claims there is no evidence to support Moussaoui's allegations in spite of numerous intense investigations previously, noting that Moussaoui's own lawyers presented evidence of his mental incompetence during his trial.[68]

Personal life

In 1972, Bandar married Haifa bint Faisal, with whom he had eight children: four sons and four daughters.[16] The youngest two (Hussa, and Abdul Aziz) attended Potomac School in McLean, Virginia, while living in the town from 2001 to 2005. His daughter Princess Reema bint Bandar, who was formerly married to Prince Faisal bin Turki,[69] organized the world's largest pink ribbon event in Saudi Arabia to raise awareness for breast cancer. His son Khalid is married to Lucy Cuthbert, niece of Ralph Percy, 12th Duke of Northumberland.

Habits and health concerns

Known for his cigar smoking,[70] he usually wears European clothes,[71] and he likes American colloquialisms and American history.[71] In Washington, he earned a reputation for partying and drinking.[71] He may have recently abandoned alcohol after a death scare in the family.[71] In the mid-1990s, he suffered his first depression.[72] His health problems were reported to have continued into the 2010s, often being treated abroad.[73]

Views

Bandar considers himself an American Hamiltonian conservative.[3] Before the 2000 U.S. presidential election was decided, he invited George H. W. Bush to go pheasant shooting on his English estate in a "Desert Storm reunion".[3] After the September 11 attacks in 2001, in an interview in the New York Times, he stated, "Bin Laden used to come to us when America through the CIA and Saudi Arabia, were helping our brother mujahideen in Afghanistan, to get rid of the communist secularist Soviet Union forces. Osama bin Laden came and said 'Thank you. Thank you for bringing the Americans to help us.' At that time, I thought he couldn’t lead eight ducks across the street."[74]

Bandar argued some researchers "learn to speak a few words of Arabic and call themselves experts about the affairs of my country."[75] In 2007, during his tenure as National Security Secretary, Bandar proposed that the Kingdom have greater contact with Israel, because he regarded Iran as a more serious threat than Israel.[76]

Property

He travels frequently on his private Airbus A-340.[3] He owns Glympton Park, Oxfordshire.[77]

Bandar owned an estate with a 32-room house in Aspen, Colorado. He bought the land in 1989 and built the residence in 1991.[78] On 12 July 2006, it was reported that Prince Bandar was seeking to sell his 56,000-square-foot (5,200 m2) mansion in Aspen, Colorado, for US $135 million. The palatial vacation home, called Hala Ranch, is larger than the White House, is perched on a mountaintop of 95 acres (380,000 m2), and includes 15 bedrooms and 16 bathrooms featuring 24-karat gold fixtures. In December 2006, the mansion was still listed for sale at $135 million.[20] In December 2007, the 14,395-square-foot (1,337.3 m2) guesthouse was sold for a reported $36.5 m.[79] The purported reason for the sale is that Bandar was too busy to enjoy the mansion.[80] Finally, he sold his Aspen ranch for $49 million to Starwood Mountain Ranch LLC in June 2012.[78] It is reported that billionaire John Paulson bought Hala Ranch,[81] and Paulson confirmed this.[82]

Honors and awards

Bandar bin Sultan is the recipient of the Order of Abdulaziz Al Saud, the Hawk Flying Medal of Aviation and the King Faisal Medal.[16] In 2001, he was awarded an honorary degree of doctor of law by Howard University.[83]

Membership

Bandar bin Sultan is a board member of the Sultan bin Abdulaziz Al Saud Foundation.[84]

Donations

In 1990, Prince Bandar donated an unknown amount to finance construction of the Oxford Centre for Islamic Studies (OCIS).[85]

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 Bahgat Korany; Ali E. Hillal Dessouki (1 January 2010). The Foreign Policies of Arab States: The Challenge of Globalization. American Univ in Cairo Press. p. 369. ISBN 978-977-416-360-9. Retrieved 14 September 2013.
  2. ↑ Simpson, William (2008). The Prince: The Secret Story of the World's Most Intriguing Royal, Prince Bandar bin Sultan. HarperCollins. ISBN 9780061189425.
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 3.6 3.7 3.8 3.9 3.10 3.11 3.12 3.13 Walsh, Elsa (24 March 2003). "The Prince". The New Yorker. Archived from the original on 14 June 2006.
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 Al Mulhim, Abdulateef (29 July 2012). "From pilot’s g-suit to three-piece suit". Arab News. Retrieved 29 July 2012.
  5. ↑ "Who's Who: The House of Saud". PBS. 7 October 2004.
  6. ↑ Nicholas Laham (1 January 2002). Selling AWACS to Saudi Arabia: The Reagan Administration and the Balancing of America's Competing Interests in the Middle East. Greenwood Publishing Group. p. 90. ISBN 978-0-275-97563-0. Retrieved 12 August 2013.
  7. ↑ Al Zuhayyan, Abdulrahman (7 October 2012). "Prince Bandar, Architect of Saudi-US Relations". Euroasia Review. Retrieved 7 October 2012.
  8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 8.3 8.4 8.5 "Prince Bandar bin Sultan: Larger-than-life diplomacy". The Economist. 6 November 2008. Retrieved 5 December 2010.
  9. ↑ John MacArthur "The Vast Power of the Saudi Lobby" April 2007, Harper's Magazine
  10. ↑ 10.0 10.1 10.2 Seymour M. Hersh (5 March 2007). "Is the Administration's new policy benefitting our enemies in the war on terrorism?". The New Yorker. Retrieved 3 May 2012.
  11. ↑ Robert Baer (May 2003), "The Fall of the House of Saud", The Atlantic, retrieved 5 December 2010
  12. ↑ David Leigh (7 June 2007), "Prince Bandar", The Guardian (London), retrieved 9 February 2011
  13. ↑ 13.0 13.1 David Ottoway (2008). The king's messenger: Prince Bandar bin Sultan and America's tangled. New York: Walker Publishing Company. p. 251. ISBN 9780802777645. Retrieved 6 December 2010.
  14. ↑ "NBC: Saudi envoy to U.S. offers resignation". MSNBC. 27 June 2005.
  15. ↑ "Bandar stays as envoy to US: Saudi". Gulf Times. 28 June 2005.
  16. ↑ 16.0 16.1 16.2 16.3 "His Royal Highness Prince Bandar bin Sultan". Royal Embassy of Saudi Arabia, Washington DC. Retrieved 21 July 2012.
  17. ↑ Jon Leyne (1 August 2005). "Tensions remain among Saudi royals". BBC News.
  18. ↑ "Saudi Arabia creates new security council". UPI (Riyadh). 21 October 2005. Retrieved 10 December 2012.
  19. ↑ "The killing of Gebran Tueni: What was the SARG thinking?". Wikileaks. 19 December 2005. Retrieved 25 March 2013.
  20. ↑ 20.0 20.1 de Borchgrave, Arnaud (27 December 2006). "Analysis: Arabian Medicis". UPI. Retrieved 29 December 2006.
  21. ↑ Jones, Toby (2007). "Saudi Arabia's Not so New Anti-Shi'ism". Middle East Report 242: 29–32. JSTOR 25164776.
  22. ↑ 22.0 22.1 22.2 Adam Entous; Nour Malas; Margaret Coker Connect (25 August 2013). "A Veteran Saudi Power Player Works To Build Support to Topple Assad". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved 30 August 2013.
  23. ↑ "Prince Bandar gets four-year extension as NSC chief". Arab News. 3 September 2009. Archived from the original on 3 September 2009. Retrieved 4 September 2009.
  24. ↑ "King Salman makes appointments". Royal Embassy, Washington DC. 29 January 2015. Retrieved 1 February 2015.
  25. ↑ Simeon Kerr (30 January 2015). "Saudi king stamps his authority with staff shake-up and handouts". Financial Times (Riyadh). Retrieved 1 February 2015.
  26. ↑ 26.0 26.1 26.2 26.3 26.4 26.5 26.6 26.7 Miles,Hugh (19 January 2009). "The Missing Prince". LRB Blog.
  27. ↑ 27.0 27.1 Sajedi, Mohioddin (23 November 2006). "The Saudi succession struggle". PressTV.
  28. ↑ 28.0 28.1 Rosenberg, Matthew., 27 May 2011. "Saudi Bid to Curb Iran Worries U.S.". Wall Street Journal.
  29. ↑ Gulfblog. June 2010, Prince Bandar missing
  30. ↑ "In kingdom, Saudi prince's coup 'fails'". PressTV. 2 August 2009.
  31. ↑ "Bandar Is Back," Simon Henderson, Foreign Policy, 21 October 2010
  32. ↑ 32.0 32.1 John Hannah (22 April 2011). "Shadow Government: Bandar's Return". Foreign Policy. Archived from the original on 10 May 2011. Retrieved 14 May 2011.
  33. ↑ 33.0 33.1 Riedel, Bruce (2011). "Brezhnev in the Hejaz" (PDF). The National Interest 115. Retrieved 23 April 2012.
  34. ↑ Knickmeyer, Ellen (20 July 2012). "Saudi Appointment Suggests Bigger Regional Ambitions". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved 20 July 2012.
  35. ↑ "Saudi king names ex-U.S. envoy as intelligence chief". CNN. 19 July 2012. Retrieved 20 July 2012.
  36. ↑ "KSA: New Director for Spy Agency". Middle East Confidential. 20 July 2012. Retrieved 20 July 2012.
  37. ↑ "New Saudi spymaster marks shift in policy". UPI. 26 July 2012. Retrieved 26 July 2012.
  38. ↑ "Saudi- Authority to monitor audiovisual media". MEFAFN. Arab News. 4 September 2012. Retrieved 4 September 2012.
  39. ↑ Jay Solomon; Sam Dagher (26 July 2012). "Key Role Floated for Syrian Defector". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved 26 July 2012.
  40. ↑ Bakr, Amena; McDowell, Angus (22 October 2013). "Saudi Arabia to 'shift away from the US' over Iran, Syria, intelligence chief says". NBC News. Reuters. Retrieved 22 October 2013.
  41. ↑ Evans-Pritchard, Ambrose (27 August 2013). "Saudis offer Russia secret oil deal if it drops Syria". The Telegraph (London). Retrieved 3 November 2013.
  42. ↑ "Saudi Intelligence Chief Back in Russia to Discuss Syria Crisis". Daily HY. 5 December 2013. Retrieved 8 December 2013.
  43. ↑ Ellen Knickmeyer and Adam Entous (19 February 2014). "Saudi Arabia Replaces Key Official in Effort to Arm Syria Rebels". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved 25 February 2014.
  44. ↑ "Saudi Arabia and Qatar in war on Iraq". Dawn. Retrieved 15 March 2014.
  45. ↑ "Syria reportedly eliminated Bandar bin Sultan in retaliation for Damascus bombing". Voltaire Network. 29 July 2012.
  46. ↑ "Saudi silence on intelligence chief Bandar’s fate denotes panic". DEBKAfile.
  47. ↑ Eric Morales (31 July 2012). "Report: Saudi intelligence chief murdered by Syrian hit men". Digital Journal.
  48. ↑ Press TV, Retrieved 5 August 2012
  49. ↑ Tehran Times, Retrieved 5 August 2012
  50. ↑ Rick Carroll (1 August 2012). "Commentary: Rumors fly of Bandar's death". Aspen Times (Aspen, Colorado).
  51. ↑ Brent Gardner-Smith (24 August 2012). "Bandar still alive, insiders say". Aspen Times (Aspen).
  52. ↑ "Prince Bandar Bin Sultan: Is The Saudi Spy Chief Dead Or Alive?". International Business Times. 31 July 2012.
  53. ↑ Aaron Kalman (30 July 2012). "Pro-Assad websites claim Syria has killed Saudi intelligence chief, to avenge Damascus bombing". Times of Israel.
  54. ↑ Ian Black (10 October 2012). "Prince Bandar bin Sultan – profile". The Guardian.
  55. ↑ Richard Walker (14 August 2012). "Was Saudi Arabia toğ spy assassinated?". American Free Press. AFP.
  56. ↑ "Saudi Intelligence Chief Prince Bandar Bin Sultan Probably Killed in Bomb Attack". New Tang Dynasty Television. 1 August 2012.
  57. ↑ Arab News, accessed 5 August 2012
  58. ↑ Washington Post, accessed 6 August 2012
  59. ↑ Kapoor, Talal (8 August 2012). "The Return of Bandar bin Sultan" (COMMENTARY). Datarabia. Retrieved 9 August 2012.
  60. ↑ "Saudi Arabia replaces intelligence chief". The Guardian. AFP. 15 April 2014. Retrieved 17 April 2014.
  61. ↑ "Saudi intelligence chief Bandar bin Sultan Removed". BBC. 16 April 2014.
  62. ↑ Woodward, 269.
  63. ↑ "Saudi prince 'received arms cash'". BBC. 7 June 2007. Retrieved 22 July 2012.
  64. ↑ Saudi Prince Secretly Made $2B in 1985 Arms Deal
  65. ↑ "Frontline:Black Money, Extended Interview with Louis Freeh". 7 April 2009.
  66. ↑ "Syrians In Ghouta Claim Saudi-Supplied Rebels Behind Chemical Attack". 29 August 2013.
  67. ↑ Bandar bin Sultan. Prince of terrorists. Press TV.
  68. ↑ 68.0 68.1 "New allegations of Saudi involvement in 9/11". CNN. 4 February 2015. Retrieved 4 February 2015.
  69. ↑ "His Royal Highness Prince Turki bin Nasser bin Abdulaziz Al Saud". Saudi Environmental Society (SENS). Retrieved 5 April 2012.
  70. ↑ Curiel, Jonathan (10 December 2006). "U.S. planning to promote democracy in Muslim nations /Campaign draws mixed reviews". The San Francisco Chronicle.
  71. ↑ 71.0 71.1 71.2 71.3 Ottaway, David (2008). The king's messenger: Prince Bandar bin Sultan and America's tangled. New York: Walker Publishing Company. p. 124. Retrieved 7 December 2010.
  72. ↑ Henderson, Simon (22 October 2010). "Foreign Policy: A Prince's Mysterious Disappearance". NPR.
  73. ↑ Ian Black (16 April 2014). "End of an era as Prince Bandar departs Saudi intelligence post". The Guardian. Retrieved 17 April 2014.
  74. ↑ Dudney, Robert S. (December 2001). "Verbatim Special: War on Terror" (PDF). Air Force Magazine: 40–48. Retrieved 22 April 2012.
  75. ↑ Ahrari, M. Ehsan (1999). "Saudi Arabia: A Simmering Cauldron of Instability?" (PDF). The Brown Journal of World Affair VI (2): 209–222.
  76. ↑ "Crown Prince Sultan backs the King in family". Wikileaks. 12 February 2007. Retrieved 6 May 2012.
  77. ↑ Leigh, David. "Secrets of al Yamamah". The Guardian (London).
  78. ↑ 78.0 78.1 "Saudi prince sells Aspen ranch for $49M". Aspen Daily News. 2 June 2012. Retrieved 3 June 2012.
  79. ↑ Carroll, Rick. "Pitkin County real estate sales dip in ’07". Retrieved 10 February 2009.
  80. ↑ AP: Saudi prince asking $135M for Colo. home, MSNBC 12 July 2006.
  81. ↑ Oshrat Carmiel; Kelly Bit (5 June 2012). "Paulson Buys Saudi Prince’s Ranch In $49 Million Deal". Bloomberg. Retrieved 5 June 2012.
  82. ↑ Brennan, Morgan (5 June 2012). "Billionaire John Paulson Confirms $49 Million Purchase of Hala Ranch". Forbes. Retrieved 9 June 2012.
  83. ↑ "Commencement 2000". Howard University. Retrieved 30 March 2012.
  84. ↑ "Who are we?". Sultan Foundation. Retrieved 4 June 2012.
  85. ↑ Riddel, Peter (2009). "The call to Islam: Diverse methods and varied responses" (PDF). Stuttgarter Theologische Themen IV: 35–59. Retrieved April 2012.