Saudi Prince Mansour bin Muqrin Killed In Helicopter Crash Amid Royal Arrests

A Saudi prince was killed in a helicopter crash Sunday in the Asir Province near the Yemen border, according to Reuters.

The prince, Mansour bin Muqrin, is the deputy governor of Asir Province. The helicopter was on a tour of the province and was carrying other government officials. The death toll and cause of the crash remain unclear.

The crash comes after a shakeup at the highest levels of government, and a thwarted ballistic missile attack Saturday.

A ballistic missile launched from Yemen was intercepted and destroyed before it hit its target, the King Khalid International Airport, in Saudi Arabia’s capital, Riyadh on Saturday. Yemen's Defense Ministry took credit for the launch, and called it a success, despite the missile being intercepted, because it “shook the Saudi capital.”

Saturday night, 11 Saudi princes were arrested including prominent billionaire investor Prince Alwaleed bin Talal. The roundup also included four ministers and a number of former ministers. The move appears to be a consolidation of power for Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, adviser and favored son of King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, according to the New York Times Saturday.

The arrests came hours after the formation of a powerful “anti-corruption,” committee helmed by the crown prince himself.

Al Arabiya, a Saudi state-owned news service, said that the committee has the right to investigate, arrest, ban from travel and freeze the assets of anyone it finds to be corrupt.

The princes are thought to be held at the Ritz Carlton in Riyadh, according to the Associated Press.