Faisal bin Abdullah Al Saud (; born 23 July 1978) is a member of the

House of Saud The House of Saud ( ) is the ruling royal family of Saudi Arabia. It is composed of the descendants of Muhammad bin Saud, founder of the Emirate of Diriyah, known as the First Saudi State, (1727–1818), and his brothers, though the ruling ...

, one of the grandsons of

Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia, officially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), is a country in West Asia. Located in the centre of the Middle East, it covers the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula and has a land area of about , making it the List of Asian countries ...

's founder

King Abdulaziz Abdulaziz bin Abdul Rahman Al Saud (; 15 January 1875Ibn Saud's birth year has been a source of debate. It is generally accepted as 1876, although a few sources give it as 1880. According to British author Robert Lacey's book ''The Kingdom'', ...

, and was head of the Saudi Arabian Red Crescent Society. He has been in detention since March 2020.

Early life and education

Prince Faisal was born on 23 July 1978. He is the fifth son of King Abdullah who ruled Saudi Arabia from 2005 to his death in January 2015. His mother is Hessa bint Trad Al Shaalan, who is the most prominent wife of King Abdullah. Prince Faisal has six blood siblings, including Mansour bin Abdullah. One of his full sisters is Abeer bint Abdullah who is the wife of Fahd bin Turki. Prince Faisal attended

Royal Military Academy Sandhurst The Royal Military Academy Sandhurst (RMAS or RMA Sandhurst), commonly known simply as Sandhurst, is one of several military academy, military academies of the United Kingdom and is the British Army's initial Commissioned officer, officer train ...

, but he could not complete his education and dropped. He graduated from the

American University in London The American University in London (AUL) was an accredited university in the United Kingdom before being suspended in April 2007. It was located in Seven Sisters Road in London.Bear, Mariah P. and John Bear. Bears' Guide to Earning Degrees by Dis ...

in 1983. He also attended and completed a special course in security and intelligence studies with the British Army in 1988.

Career

Faisal bin Abdullah was one of Crown Prince Abdullah's advisors. In 1991, he was appointed director general of the Department of Documents and Information at the

National Guard National guard is the name used by a wide variety of current and historical uniformed organizations in different countries. The original National Guard was formed during the French Revolution around a cadre of defectors from the French Guards. ...

and served there until 2000. Faisal then served as an advisor to the head of General Intelligence from 2000 to 2006. He was named as the head of the Saudi Arabian Red Crescent Society with the rank of minister on 20 November 2006. He was removed from the office on 18 July 2016 without any official announcement. He was replaced by Mohammad Al Qassem in the post. Faisal bin Abdullah also has some business activities.

Controversy and detention

Faisal bin Abdullah filed a lawsuit due to perceived defamation against one of '' Al Watan'' journalists, Saleh al Shehy in June 2007. He was

arrested An arrest is the act of apprehending and taking a person into custody (legal protection or control), usually because the person has been suspected of or observed committing a crime. After being taken into custody, the person can be Interroga ...

in November 2017 together with other senior members of the royal family. He was freed in December 2017 following a financial settlement, but an arbitrary travel ban was imposed on him. It was reported by

Human Rights Watch Human Rights Watch (HRW) is an international non-governmental organization that conducts research and advocacy on human rights. Headquartered in New York City, the group investigates and reports on issues including War crime, war crimes, crim ...

in May 2020 that he had been detained again on 27 March 2020. He was taken by the Saudi security forces from his house near Riyadh.

Personal life

Former wife of Faisal bin Abdullah was Noura bint Ahmed bin Abdulaziz, a daughter of Ahmed bin Abdulaziz. They have three children. Later they divorced. In 2001, Faisal bin Abdullah married Fahda Hussain Abdulrahman Al Athel. In 2016, they divorced. While he was in the United States in 2015, Faisal bin Abdullah survived a

heart attack A myocardial infarction (MI), commonly known as a heart attack, occurs when Ischemia, blood flow decreases or stops in one of the coronary arteries of the heart, causing infarction (tissue death) to the heart muscle. The most common symptom ...

. In 2022, it was reported that Faisal bin Abdullah was "foot-dragging" in connection with the sale of a $16.8 million mansion in

Beverly Hills Beverly Hills is a city located in Los Angeles County, California, United States. A notable and historic suburb of Los Angeles, it is located just southwest of the Hollywood Hills, approximately northwest of downtown Los Angeles. Beverly Hil ...

, which he bought with his then-wife Fahda Hussain Abdulrahman Al Athel.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Saud, Faisal Abdullah 20th-century Saudi Arabian businesspeople 21st-century Saudi Arabian businesspeople 21st-century Saudi Arabian politicians 1978 births Faisal Living people Government ministers of Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabian prisoners and detainees Faisal Abdullaj Sons of kings