SAUDI Arabia’s despotic monarch king Abdullah died aged 90 today, with power in the country passing to his 79-year-old half-brother, Salman bin Abdul-Aziz Al Saud.

Western leaders rushed to pay tribute to the dead tyrant, who presided over one of the world’s most repressive regimes.

British Prime Minister David Cameron praised the king’s “commitment to peace.”

But Saudi Arabia under Abdullah was the world’s leading sponsor of Islamist terror, with Isis and al-Qaida receiving vast funds from within the country.

The state’s extremist Wahhabi ideology was shared by sectarian militias which it promoted across the Middle East and the Saudis are widely accused of fanning the flames of civil war in Syria and Iraq.

Mr Cameron added that Abdullah had strengthened “understanding between faiths” — Saudi Arabia bans the practice of all non-Muslim faiths, officially classifies atheists as “terrorists” and punishes conversion from Islam to other religions with death.

Capital punishment for smuggling Bibles into the country was authorised by law as recently as December.

Israel and the United States joined an international chorus of sycophantic flattery for the oil-funded dictatorship, a key regional ally of Washington which has backed US wars in the Muslim world.

But Human Rights Watch pointed out that despite promising reforms, Abdullah retained absolute legislative, executive and judicial power in the monarchy’s hands.

Women’s rights are also more curtailed than in any other country on Earth.

Saudi women are banned from driving, cannot obtain passports, work or access to higher education without the consent of a male guardian.

Rights groups have documented rape victims being publicly flogged for “adultery.” The regime regularly executes people by beheading — for crimes including “sorcery” — and carries out a range of other brutal punishments including amputating hands and feet.

Communist Party of Britain leader Robert Griffiths pointed out that there was scant chance of change under King Salman, who has pledged to continue the policies of his predecessors and is on record stating: “We can’t have democracy in Saudi Arabia.”

“One bigoted despot will simply be replaced by another,” Mr Griffiths said.

Hall of shame: The most obsequious tributes to the murderous Saudi despot

“A staunch advocate of inter-faith relations … he launched the Arab Peace Initiative in 2002 which has stood the test of time as a potential basis for a solution to the Israel-Palestine issue” — Tony Blair

“A discreet but strong advocate of women” — IMF chief Christine Lagarde

“A brave partner in fighting violent extremism” — US Secretary of State John Kerry

“Afghans will always remember king Abdullah as a great supporter of their jihad” — Afghan President Ashraf Ghani

“Always candid and had the courage of his convictions” — Barack Obama

…and a rare voice of reason

“One bigoted despot will simply be replaced by another to rule over a brutal and corrupt system that needs to be swept away entirely.

“Women’s and trade union rights are virtually non-existent in Saudi Arabia. Communist and progressive parties are banned. The so-called progress towards democracy is an utter fraud that only exists to save face for its equally corrupt Western allies” — Robert Griffiths, Communist Party of Britain general secretary