Sara bint Talal Al Saud () is a Saudi princess and the daughter of Prince Talal.

Background and family

Sara bint Talal was raised in

Riyadh Riyadh is the capital and largest city of Saudi Arabia. It is also the capital of the Riyadh Province and the centre of the Riyadh Governorate. Located on the eastern bank of Wadi Hanifa, the current form of the metropolis largely emerged in th ...

in the household of her father. Her mother, Moudie bint Abdul Mohsen Al Angari (died 2008), was the third wife of Prince Talal. Sara has a full-brother, Turki bin Talal. Among her half-brothers is the notorious plutocrat, Al Waleed. Sara was nicknamed "little Barbie" because of her beauty and her fondness for material well-being, but she was educated by a strict English governess. After studies at the

King Saud University King Saud University (KSU, ) is a public university in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Established in 1957 by King Saud bin Abdulalziz to address the country's skilled worker shortage, it is the first university in Saudi Arabia. It was known as Riyadh U ...

, she married a royal cousin, but got divorced when still in her twenties. She is the mother of four children.

Activities

In the mid-2000s, Princess Sara was reported to be running a local charity, namely Down's Syndrome Riyadh charity, in Saudi Arabia.

Political asylum request

After Crown Prince Abdullah became king in August 2005, she stated that her father was also a contender for the Saudi throne. She also told the AFP "We, the Saudi people, want a clearer mechanism for succession... All (members of the royal family) agreed on Crown Prince Abdullah, given that he is the eldest and best qualified. Prince Sultan was also agreed upon to become crown prince. But what happens next?" She accompanied her father while he was ambassador to

UNICEF UNICEF ( ), originally the United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund, officially United Nations Children's Fund since 1953, is an agency of the United Nations responsible for providing Humanitarianism, humanitarian and Development a ...

, visiting refugee camps. However, she later had a falling out with her father.

BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...

reports that she has been living in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

since 2007 with her four children. The reason was reported to be a conflict with her father, and she told the press "my father wanted to crush me." The quarrel with her father led her to be protected by her uncle, the late Crown Prince

Nayef bin Abdulaziz Nayef bin Abdulaziz Al Saud (, ''Nāyif ibn ‘Abd al ‘Azīz Āl Su‘ūd''; 9 October 1934 – 16 June 2012) was the crown prince of Saudi Arabia and deputy prime minister from October 2011 and the minister of interior from October 1975 unt ...

, a rival of her father, until his death in June 2012. Within a month of Nayef's death, Sara sought political asylum for herself and for her children in the

on 8 July 2012, claiming fear from political threats on her family. It was the first case of a senior member of the Saudi ruling family seeking political asylum. Immediately after her request for political asylum, and apparently in order to improve her credentials to get asylum, Princess Sara told the press that she wanted to see reform in Saudi Arabia and wanted to fight against corruption in that country.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Saud, Sara Talal 20th-century Saudi Arabian women 20th-century Saudi Arabian people 21st-century Saudi Arabian women 21st-century Saudi Arabian people Year of birth missing (living people) King Saud University alumni Living people

Sara Sara may refer to: People * Sara (given name), a feminine given name People with the given name * Sara Aboobacker (1936–2023), Indian writer and translator * Sara Ahmed (born 1969), British-Australian writer * Sara Allgood (1880–1950), Ir ...

Sara Talal