Word: ibn
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Dates: during 1970-1979
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...According to one apocryphal tale, an American population expert went to Saudi Arabia to take a census. He called on King Abdul Aziz al Saud (Ibn Saud), who told him: "You're wasting your time. There are 7 million people here." With apologies, the American said there could not be more than 3 million. "You're wrong," said the King. "There are at least 6 million." Begging forgiveness for his audacity, the American insisted that surely there were no more than 4 million. At this point the King held out his hand and closed the deal, bazaar-style, saying...
...ruling family dates back to the 18th century, when the head of the tiny emirate of Dariyah (near Riyadh), Mohammed ibn Saud, formed an alliance with Mohammed ibn Abdul Wahhab, the fiery leader of a puritanical Islamic movement; his Wahhabi sect still holds sway in Saudi Arabia. This combination of tribal military skill and religious fanaticism did dominate central Arabia for 75 years, until it was crushed by an invading Egyptian army acting at the behest of the Ottoman rulers in Constantinople...
...rely on is its own glittering past. The pyramids and temples that awed adventurers from Caesar to Napoleon are irresistible still, magnets for tourist dollars, marks and yen that Egypt must have to help surmount its present problems. "Egypt is a dusty city and a green tree," said Amr ibn al As, the Arab general who conquered the country for Islam's warriors in the 7th century. "The Nile traces a line through the midst of it; blessed are its early-morning voyages and its travels at eventide...
...policy of partnership is supported by King Khalid ibn Abdul Aziz, who succeeded the slain Faisal ibn Abdul Aziz al Saud in 1975, and the older men, mostly royal princes, who run many of the ministries. But the men who breathe life into the policy are a lively, hard-driving group of young technocrats whose attitudes are shaping the country. They are known as the "American Mafia," because they were educated in the U.S. The best known of the group is Yamani, 47, who studied at Harvard. Not a member of the numerous royal family (there are more than...
...listened respectfully to Yamani's proposals though we did not accept them," said one oil minister. When the other OPEC chieftains failed to buy his reasoning, Yamani dramatically rose from the conference table and strode out of the hall. He flew to Riyadh for talks with King Khalid ibn Abdul Aziz. The other oil ministers pretended to be unimpressed by Yamani's theatrics. Said Iraq's oil minister, Karim: "It is a big game that he always plays." When word came that Yamani was returning to the conference. Qatar's minister of finance and petroleum, Abdul...