Skip to content
Search
Human content, AI powered search.

Latest Stories

News

Pissed off Princes

Pissed off Princes
Willis Sparks
By Willis SparksJanuary 12, 2018
Willis Sparks
Willis Sparks is a senior editor for GZERO Daily. He is also a Director in the Global Macro practice at Eurasia Group, where he has worked since 2005. He has made speeches on international politics on every continent except Antarctica. Willis holds degrees from Brown University, the Juilliard School, Columbia University's School of International and Public Affairs, and the Institut d'Etudes Politiques in Paris. He also holds an honorary degree from the Moscow Art Theatre School. A native of Macon, Georgia, Willis has worked as a stuntman at New York's Metropolitan Opera. As a child, he declined an opportunity to spend an afternoon riding the Great American Scream Machine, a rollercoaster, with Ronald McDonald, for money. He has never regretted that decision.
See Full Bio
Make us preferred on Google

Last weekend, 11 unnamed Saudi princes were arrested outside a royal palace in Riyadh for disturbing the peace. They were protesting an announcement that the government would no longer pay the water and electricity bills for members of the royal family. Three comments:

One, the Saudi royal family is bigger than you think. It’s now estimated to have up to 15,000 members. We can’t know the true total until there’s some kind of House of Saud census.

Two, this is great publicity for Crown Prince (and soon-to-be king) Mohammad bin Salman, because it helps him make the case to ordinary citizens that even the (seemingly) powerful and well-connected will have to make sacrifices in a world where oil can no longer be the answer to every financial question.

Three, the Crown Prince continues to make enemies within the royal family. These 11 unnamed princes are probably nobodies with little real influence. We may never know. But the message is clear, even for those more powerful: The days of rule by family consensus are over, and the man now in charge wants change. We better keep watching.

Latest Videos

What a Democratic Congress would mean for Trump and the GOPplay icon
GZERO World Clips

What a Democratic Congress would mean for Trump and the GOP

Could Chinese AI give Europe an edge?
The Debrief

Could Chinese AI give Europe an edge?

Another break in the Trump-Zelensky relationship
Quick Take

Another break in the Trump-Zelensky relationship

Can Republicans survive Trump's unpopularity?
GZERO World Clips

Can Republicans survive Trump's unpopularity?

Midterms 2026: Is a blue wave coming?
GZERO World with Ian Bremmer

Midterms 2026: Is a blue wave coming?

The French are furious at Macron–for good reason
The Debrief

The French are furious at Macron–for good reason

More For You

South Sudan suffers drone strike, Romania finally gets a government, Colombia revives sea beef with Nicaragua

Medical workers treat injured people at Ameth Bek hospital after a drone strike on a market in the disputed Abyei region along the border between South Sudan and Sudan, October 19, 2026.

Medical workers treat injured people at Ameth Bek hospital after a drone strike on a market in the disputed Abyei region along the border between South Sudan and Sudan, October 19, 2026.

REUTERS/Medecins Sans Frontieres
Drone strike raises tensions between Sudan and South SudanSouth Sudan is accusing neighboring Sudan of launching a drone strike that killed at least 73 people at a market in Abyei, a disputed, oil-rich region of roughly 4,000 square miles claimed by both countries. The attack has heightened tensions between the two states, which split in 2011 [...]

Rare earths aren’t so rare in China

Rare earths aren’t so rare in China
Lottie Tellyn
The minerals include yttrium oxide, which is crucial for manufacturing jet engines and semiconductors. Inside China, one kilogram costs a mere $9. But outside of China? $1,150. China’s rare earth export controls — imposed partly in response to new US tariffs — are now threatening global supply chains. Japan has warned that it could run out of some [...]

Alberta nixes independence - but immigration is the real story

Supporters of the Forever Canadian group, who want Alberta to remain in Canada, wave Canadian flags as they wait for the results of a non-binding referendum on Alberta sovereignty in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada October 19, 2026.

Supporters of the Forever Canadian group, who want Alberta to remain in Canada, wave Canadian flags as they wait for the results of a non-binding referendum on Alberta sovereignty in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada October 19, 2026.

REUTERS/Todd Korol
Alberta is staying in Canada. After a long night of ballot counting, with some polling stations open until 10:30 pm due to long lines and late starts, voters in the oil-rich western Canadian province decisively rejected taking steps toward independence. Seventy-six percent voted to remain part of Canada, while 24% voted to initiate a secession [...]

Unrest in France spreads, Trump endorses Netanyahu, US-Ukraine ties fray

Protesters set up barricades and burn materials near Place de la Republique in Paris, France, on October 18, 2026, the day following a large demonstration.

Protesters set up barricades and burn materials near Place de la Republique in Paris, France, on October 18, 2026, the day following a large demonstration.

Jerome Gilles via Reuters Connect
Weekend of unrest rocks FranceOngoing student protests in France descended into looting and riots over the weekend as more than half a million people took to the streets across the country. The unrest briefly spread to Portugal, Belgium, and Italy as well. Although the French protests began with demands for more education funding, the latest [...]