1969 Saudi Arabian coup d'état attempt

The 1950s and 1960s saw numerous coups d'état in the region. Muammar Gaddafi's coup that overthrew the monarchy in oil-rich Libya in 1969 was especially ominous for Saudi Arabia due to the similarity between the two sparsely-populated desert countries.[3] As a result, King Faisal built a sophisticated security apparatus, and cracked down firmly on dissent. As in all affairs, King Faisal justified these policies in Islamic terms. Early in his reign, when faced by demands for a written constitution for the country, King Faisal responded that "our constitution is the Quran."[5]

The plotters controlled some air force planes. Their plan was for these planes to bomb the Royal Palace in Riyadh, to kill the King and the other high ranking princes who might succeed him. After the King and princes were dead, the plotters planned to announce the formation of the Republic of the Arabian Peninsula.[2]

Many of the conspirators were of Hejazi origin; there was an independent Kingdom of Hejaz, until it was annexed by the Saudis in 1925. One of the key conspirators, Yusuf Tawwil, a Hejazi merchant and acquaintance of Prince Fahd, was believed to hold Hejazi separatist beliefs. Others involved in the plot were Najdis or Sunnis from the Eastern Province.[6]

After the Saudi government discovered the coup, a wave of mass arrests followed, including the arrest of 28 Lieutenant Colonels and 30 Majors alongside around 200 other officers. By the end of 1969 about 2,000 people had been arrested in connection with the coup attempt.[7] Some other participants managed to flee the country. A number of coup participants were executed including two Colonels, Daoud Roumi and Said al Omari.