ABSTRACT
Saudi Arabia considers itself a leader of both the Arab and Muslim worlds and Saudi stability has major implications for the stability of the entire Middle East and the vital interests of the USA and other major industrial powers. Understanding maternal lineage is therefore important to understanding the dynamics of the Saudi royal family. The rebels accused the royal family of corruption and demanded that all traces of Western influence be eradicated from the Kingdom. In 1995 Saudi Arabia experienced the first real political violence since the 1979 takeover of the Grand Mosque. Since then the Saudi government has, through a combination of improved security policing, economic reforms, relatively high oil prices and efforts to re-educate militants, succeeded in greatly reducing the incidence of political violence. Saudi Arabia has developed a modern oil and petrochemicals industry, a modern infrastructure, a modern health care system and has made great strides in education, including the education of women.
