Mishal ibn Abd al-Aziz

Mischal ibn Abd al-Aziz (1953; right)

Mishal ibn Abd al-Aziz ( Arabic مشعل بن عبد العزيز آل سعود, DMG Mišʿal b. ʿAbd al-ʿAzīz Āl Saʿūd ; born September 5, 1926 ; died May 3, 2017 ) was the 17th son of King Abd al-Aziz ibn Saud . Because of this he was called - like all male descendants - with his full surname "ibn Abd al-Aziz Al Saud" .

In 1951 he was appointed Minister of Defense after his older brother, Prince Mansur, died. From 1957 to 1960 he was an adviser to his older half-brother, King Saud . In 1963 he was appointed governor of Mecca. He left this post in 1971.

On December 9, 2007, King Abdullah appointed him chairman of the newly created Baya Council of the Royal Family. The living sons or their descendants of King Abd al-Aziz ibn Abd ar-Rahman Al Saud are represented in the Baya Council, who decide on the succession to the throne in the kingdom.

Prince Mishal had officially resigned from the possibility of ascending the Saudi throne. He was considered a close partisan of his older half-brother King Abdullah.

Prince Mishal was considered one of the most prominent businessmen in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia . He owned large estates. His investments were made in numerous companies such as insurance, electrical companies and cement manufacturing.

Prince Mishal had eight daughters and nine sons from five marriages.

His only living brother is Prince Mutaib ibn Abd al-Aziz .

Prince Mischal was seen as a promoter of the traditional racing camel and horse racing. He owned valuable racing camels and racing horses. Every year he opened the kingdom's great camel race. He also pursued traditional falcon hunting.

literature

• Mordechai Abir: Saudi Arabia. Government, Society and the Gulf Crisis. Routledge, London et al. 1993, ISBN 0-415-09325-2 .
• Said K. Aburish: The Fairytale Rise and Fall of the House of Saud. Is Saudi Arabia still acceptable as a partner of the West? Knesebeck, Munich 1994, ISBN 3-926901-66-7 .
• Sharaf Sabri: The house of Saud in commerce. A study of royal entrepreneurship in Saudi Arabia. IS Publications, New Delhi 2001, ISBN 81-9012540-0 .