Abdulaziz bin Abdullah Al Saud ( ''ʿAbd al ʿAzīz bin ʿAbd Allāh Āl Suʿūd''; born 27 October 1962) is a Saudi

royal Royal may refer to: People * Royal (name), a list of people with either the surname or given name * A member of a royal family or Royalty (disambiguation), royalty Places United States * Royal, Arkansas, an unincorporated community * Royal, Ill ...

, the fourth son of King Abdullah and one of the grandsons of Saudi'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 a businessman who served as the deputy minister of foreign affairs from 2011 to 2015.

Early life and education

Prince Abdulaziz was born in Riyadh on 27 October 1962. He is the fourth son of King Abdullah. His mother is Aida Fustuq, a Lebanese woman. His full sister is Adila bint Abdullah. Abdulaziz bin Abdullah graduated from the

University of Hertfordshire The University of Hertfordshire (UH) is a Universities in the United Kingdom, university in Hertfordshire, United Kingdom. The university is based largely in Hatfield, Hertfordshire, Hatfield, Hertfordshire. Its antecedent institution, Hatfield ...

with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science in 1986.

Career

Abdulaziz bin Abdullah served in the

Saudi Arabian National Guard The Saudi Arabian National Guard (SANG), also known as the White Army, is one of the three major branches of the military forces of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. The national guard is under the administrative control of the Ministry of National ...

for fifteen years in different positions. In 1991, he was appointed as an advisor to Crown Prince Abdullah. Specifically, he was advisor of the Crown Prince Abdullah for Syrian affairs. He was also a state minister. King Abdullah appointed Prince Abdulaziz as deputy foreign minister on 22 July 2011. During the Syrian civil war, Prince Abdulaziz asked

Turkey Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia (country), Georgia, Armen ...

to establish "nerve centre" attempting to topple Bashar al-Assad. The center was founded in

Adana Adana is a large city in southern Turkey. The city is situated on the Seyhan River, inland from the northeastern shores of the Mediterranean Sea. It is the administrative seat of the Adana Province, Adana province, and has a population of 1 81 ...

in the mid-2012. Prince Abdulaziz personally dealt with

Bashar al-Assad Bashar al-Assad (born 11September 1965) is a Syrian politician, military officer and former dictator Sources characterising Assad as a dictator: who served as the president of Syria from 2000 until fall of the Assad regime, his government ...

's file following the civil war in Syria. Prince Abdulaziz represented Saudi Arabia at the Non-Aligned Movement summit in Tehran from 30 to 31 August 2012, since foreign affairs minister Prince Saud had an operation and could not attend the meeting. Prince Abdulaziz met with Iranian President Mahmud Ahmadinejad during his stay in Tehran. His tenure ended in April 2015 when Saud Al Faisal resigned from his post as foreign minister due to health concerns.

Business activities

Prince Abdulaziz is owner of Tower Lane Properties, a land development firm. It is reported that the company spent $12 million on five-and-a-quarter acres of land in the

Benedict Canyon Benedict Canyon is an area in the Westside of the city of Los Angeles, California. To the north of the Benedict Canyon neighborhood is the neighborhood of Sherman Oaks, to the west is the neighborhood of Beverly Glen, to the east are Beverl ...

in 2009, and applied for permits to build a mansion. The project, later, was reduced to 60,000-square-foot. However, more than 1,000 residents of the area signed a petition against this project, requiring an environmental review. The Prince's lawyers filed a case against this petition. Prince Abdulaziz won his lawsuit against the city of Los Angeles in late August 2012.

Other activities

Abdulaziz bin Abdullah founded the Centennial Fund in July 2004 and is the chairman of the Fund which is a nonprofit organization with the goal of supporting the Saudi business. He is also one of the members of the

KAUST The King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST; ') is a private research university located in Thuwal, Saudi Arabia. Founded in 2009, the university provides research and graduate training programs in English as the official ...

Board of Trustees. Delano Roosevelt, who is a grandson of

Franklin D. Roosevelt Franklin Delano Roosevelt (January 30, 1882April 12, 1945), also known as FDR, was the 32nd president of the United States, serving from 1933 until his death in 1945. He is the longest-serving U.S. president, and the only one to have served ...

, and Prince Abdulaziz jointly established the Friends of Saudi Arabia. This organization seeks to foster the friendly relations between Saudi Arabia and the United States. Prince Abdulaziz is also chairman of the board of trustees of

Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz International Award for Translation King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz International Award for Translation (previously Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz International Award for Translation (2008-2014)) is a Saudi Arabia, Saudi international literary award for the ...

. Abdulaziz bin Abdullah is one of three members of the

Allegiance Council The Allegiance Council ( ''Hay’at al-Bay‘ah''), also known as the Allegiance Commission or Allegiance Institution or Succession Commission, is the body responsible for determining future succession to the throne of Saudi Arabia. It was forme ...

who did not support the appointment of

Mohammad bin Salman Mohammed bin Salman Al Saud (; born 31 August 1985), also known as MBS or MbS, is the '' de facto'' ruler of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, formally serving as Crown Prince and Prime Minister. He is the heir apparent to the Saudi throne, ...

as crown prince on 21 June 2017. The others were

Muhammad bin Saad Al Saud Muhammad bin Saad Al Saud (; born 1944) is a former deputy governor of Riyadh Province, member of the House of Saud, and one of the grandsons of Saudi Arabia's King Abdulaziz. He has been in detention since March 2020. Early life and education ...

and

Ahmed bin Abdulaziz Al Saud Prince Ahmed bin Abdulaziz Al Saud ( ''Aḥmed bin ʿAbdulʿazīz Āl Suʿūd''; born 5 September 1942) is a member of House of Saud who served as deputy minister of interior from 1975 to 2012 and briefly as minister of interior in 2012. He was ...

. Abdulaziz represented his older brother, Khalid bin Abdullah, when the opinions of the council members were asked.

Personal life

Abdulaziz bin Abdullah is married and has four children, three from his previous marriage to Abeer bint Turki bin Nasser, and one from Nathalie Ghassan Maamary.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Saud, Abdulaziz Abdullah

Abdulaziz Abdulaziz (; ; 8 February 18304 June 1876) was the sultan of the Ottoman Empire from 25 June 1861 to 30 May 1876, when he was overthrown in a government coup. He was a son of Sultan Mahmud II and succeeded his brother Abdulmejid I in 1861. Ab ...

1962 births Alumni of the University of Hertfordshire

Living people Saudi Arabian people of Palestinian descent Saudi Arabian people of Lebanese descent

People from Riyadh Sons of kings