We mourn his death

Assuming kingship in mid-1982 against the turbulent backdrop of Ayatollah Khomeini's founding of a Republic in Shiite Iran and the blitzkrieg take-over of the holy mosque in Mecca by some Islamic radicals, Fahd ruled Saudi Arabia for the next 13 years with a steady hand until his exit to the background due to illness.

He successfully weathered the oil crises and could use the fuel effectively in gaining leverage on the world economic stage as a power to reckon with.

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In spite of being credited with liberal leanings, he had to be acquiescent to the power of the religious establishment as could be noticed in the application of rigid social codes in the peninsula.

Something of an arbiter in the region, he called up Lebanese MPs to the Saudi mountain resort Taef to devise a peace plan that ended 15-year long civil war in Lebanon. But, as for late King Fahd's image of 'a stout defender of Arab causes', one feels his being an ally of the USA appeared to dilute his espousal of Palestinian rights.

Continuity is the hallmark of not only the Saudi system of succession of power but also that of the country's policies. One very much hopes though, that the unfinished agenda of the former king in terms of establishing social liberalism and representative government will be taken up by his successor king Abdullah and implemented on a gradual but progressive basis.

We condole King Fahd's death and wish his successor all the best.