Forged signature of Saudi prince sparked war in Yemen

A former Saudi official has alleged in a report that Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman forged his father’s signature on the royal decree that launched the kingdom’s long and stalled war against Houthi rebels in Yemen.

Saudi Arabia did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the allegations, which were made without evidence by Saad al-Jabri in an interview published on Monday by the BBC, although the kingdom described him as a “discredited former government official.”

Al-Jabri, a former intelligence official living in exile in Canada, has been at odds with the kingdom for years over his two sons being jailed in a case he describes as an effort to lure him back to Saudi Arabia.

Prince Mohammed serves as Saudi Arabia’s de facto leader and often meets with leaders on behalf of his father, King Salman, 88.

His assertive attitude, particularly when he rose to power at the start of the war in Yemen in 2015, extended to a broader campaign of repression against any perceived dissent or power base that might challenge his authority.

In his remarks to the BBC, Al-Jabri said a “credible, reliable” official associated with the Saudi Interior Ministry had confirmed to him that Prince Mohammed had signed the royal decree declaring war in place of his father.

“We were surprised that there was a royal decree to allow ground interventions,” Al-Jabri told the BBC. “He forged his father’s signature for that royal decree. The king’s mental capacity was deteriorating.”

Yemen’s war against Iranian-backed Houthi rebels, launched with promises from the prince that it would end quickly, has dragged on for nearly a decade. The war has killed more than 150,000 people and created one of the world’s worst humanitarian disasters.