Upon the death of King Abdullah on 23 January 2015, Salman ascended to the throne and Muqrin became crown prince.[1] At the same time, Muhammad bin Nayef, the Interior Minister and a supporter of Salman's, was appointed deputy crown prince, an act that was ratified by the Allegiance Council after the fact. Muhammad bin Nayef is the first grandson of Ibn Saud to enter the official line of succession.[citation needed]