The absence of Saudi King Salman yesterday from the Gulf summit held in Riyadh has once again raised the question of whether the powers were actually transferred to his son Muhammad bin Salman.

The 85-year-old king has been seen in public once since the corona erupted 20 months ago. According to reports, since the appearance of the virus, the king has moved to a palace in the city of Naum where he is in solitary confinement that will prevent him from contracting it.

A few days ago it was reported by Arab sources that King Salman had transferred to his son the full powers without the matter being made public yet. As is well known, there is considerable opposition within the royal family to the early coronation of Ben Salman.