SAUDI ARABIA: Reunion in Riyadh

A quarter of a century ago, Ibn Saud’s warriors thundered westward out of the central Arabian desert, sacked the town of Taif and marauded through the Hejaz. Relentlessly, Ibn Saud’s men drove Sherif Hussein, ruler of the kingdom, out of the Hejaz, and the holy city of Mecca. Hussein, a haughty old man who was head of the Hashemite clan, went into bitter exile in Cyprus. He filled his two sons, who were to become King Abdullah of Jordan and King Feisal I of Iraq, with hatred of the usurper. Abdullah’s son Talal, then 13, heard his grandfather’s promises of vengeance on Ibn Saud.

Last week, son Talal, now King of Jordan, climbed down from a plane at Riyadh, Saudi Arabia’s seat of government, and a faltering old man hobbled over to embrace him. The old man was Ibn Saud. A military band boomed out the Jordanian national anthem and 21 guns cracked a salute. Hashemite and hated enemy had got together. That evening, 71-year-old Ibn Saud, father of more than 30 living sons, gave one of the most magnificent dinners of his life. Afterward, the one-eyed old lion of the desert and the gloomy, unstable King of Jordan talked well into the night.

Each brought a guilty conscience to the table. Ever since he drove Hussein into exile and seized his lands, Ibn Saud had feared the Hashemites would return for vengeance. Recently, the old man had become obsessed with the fear that the British would allow Jordan to use its Arab Legion—the most formidable force in the Arab world—to reconquer the Hejaz. Talal, for his part, evidently wants to prove that he stands with the Arabs and, if necessary, against the British. He is said to be ashamed of his father’s pro-British role.

The two rulers got along fine. Ibn Saud reportedly offered to restore to Talal $1,400,000 of jewels and household effects belonging to the Hashemites. Talal went on the radio to thank the King for his “real hospitality.” As Talal left for home, Ibn Saud, who had journeyed out to the airport to see him off, gave the younger King a sword encrusted with precious stones.