Is a ruler’s view of another ruler fixed, or does it change according to whims, interests, and circumstances—just like ordinary people? And is a ruler’s perspective before assuming power different from his perspective once he governs? And does it change again when he leaves office, whether voluntarily or by force?
Churchill’s famous saying is true:
“Britain has no permanent enemies and no permanent friends, only permanent interests.”
But the question remains: Do Arab leaders think the way Churchill did? That is the real puzzle—indeed, the heart of the matter.
Below is what President Mohamed Anwar Al‑Sadat wrote about King Saud bin Abdulaziz in March 1956 in the Egyptian magazine Al‑Hilal, in an article titled:
“The Falcon of Arabia: Saud as I Saw Him.”
He wrote:
“We had just completed the rites of Hajj, and King Saud’s caravan was leading the pilgrims returning from Mecca to Jeddah after he had performed the pilgrimage with the Muslims. Suddenly, the King’s caravan stopped, clearing the road so that people could continue their way.
When our turn came to pass the point where the King had stopped, I saw King Saud sitting on the sand with his entourage—not as a king, but as an ordinary Muslim. Everyone was performing the Maghrib prayer, prostrating with their foreheads on the sand, without ceremony or formality. Among them was King Saud, a Muslim performing his prayer.
I said to myself: This is not the behavior of kings; this is the character of the early Commanders of the Faithful, who stripped themselves before God, religion, and the people.”
Sadat continued:
“King Saud followed a daily path devoid of the trappings that kings usually adopt. His conduct was rooted in the natural Islamic disposition—perhaps an extension of the era of the Rightly Guided Caliphs.
His day began with the remembrance of God and the dawn prayer, after which he attended to the affairs of his people—not in a royal palace, but in a modest Arab majlis in the heart of Riyadh. People came to sit with Saud not as a king, but as a guardian, a father, and a brother, in the manner established by Arab tradition since the dawn of Islam: simplicity, freedom, and mutual trust between ruler and ruled, without burden or formality.
Saud treated his subjects as a Muslim would—without ostentation, affectation, or ceremony. His nature in this regard was, as I said, the nature of the early Commanders of the Faithful, who devoted themselves to God, worshipped Him sincerely, and fulfilled the rights of the people while upholding their duties.”
It is worth noting that when President Sadat wrote this article, he held the rank of minister and was responsible for what was then known as the Islamic Congress.
Asharq Al‑Awsat Newspaper