The Dark Side of Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince l Al Jazeera English (2018)

Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince, Mohammed bin Salman, has been on a quick rise to power and has been touted as a progressive reformer. But his human rights record casts a dark shadow on his economic and social reforms.

Here are 8 things that have gone wrong since MBS started his ascent to power:

1. War in Yemen

2. Detention of Lebanon’s PM

3. Ritz-Carlton purge

4. GCC crisis and blockade of Qatar

5. Jailed women’s rights activists

6. Diplomatic spat with Canada

7. Rise of executions in the kingdom

8. Disappearance of Jamal Khashoggi

The number of executions in the kingdom has rapidly increased lately. According to human rights organisations, MBS has overseen the execution, of 16 people on average per month, every month. If this rate continues, 2018 could see 200 executions. That is the highest number ever recorded in Saudi Arabia in one year.

In October 2018, Saudi journalist and MBS critic Jamal Khashoggi enters a Saudi consulate in Istanbul and never comes out. Pressure mounted on Saudi Arabia to reveal what happened to Khashoggi: world leaders demanded a thorough and transparent investigation.