Staff Writer
Thursday’s wedding of Saudi architect Rajwa Al Seif and Jordan’s Crown Prince Hussein bin Abdullah was seen by royals from all over the world.
The event took place in Amman’s Zahran Palace, which was built in the 1960s and hosted several significant royal nuptials, including those of King Abdullah II and Queen Rania and his late father, the late King Hussein bin Talal.
At a wedding ceremony attended by their families, 140 guests, including the Prince and Princess of Wales and the US First Lady Jill Biden, the king’s eldest son and Al Seif, both 28 years old, exchanged vows.
Other notables included King Philippe of Belgium and Crown Princess Elisabeth, King Willem-Alexander of the Netherlands, and Queen Maxima of Denmark.
Thousands of people gathered to see the parade in Amman as it passed through streets decked with banners and photos of the happy couple. The highly awaited weddings were met with festivities throughout Jordan.
To honor the bride and groom, a royal red motorcade—reserved for rare occasions—crossed the nation’s capital.
Samih Maaytah, a former communications minister, previously told AFP that King Abdullah II, who is 61 years old and has been in power since 1999, has long been preparing his eldest son to succeed him by bringing him along to significant visits and meetings.
After his father stripped his half-brother Hamzah of the crown in 2004, Prince Hussein was named the new successor to the kingdom in 2009.
After being charged with trying to overthrow the monarchy in 2021, which caused shockwaves throughout the country, Hamzah would eventually be put under home arrest.
the regal institution.
Hamzah gave up his throne in April 2022, claiming that his personal principles no longer matched those of “our institutions”.
In comparison to its Middle Eastern neighbors, Jordan is relatively stable, but recent years have seen protests as it battles economic difficulties.
According to the World Bank, Jordan has a high level of debt and a 23 percent unemployment rate. The Hashemite kingdom is heavily reliant on international assistance.
In the parliamentary monarchy of Jordan, a nation of 11 million people, the king exercises broad political authority and serves as the supreme commander of the armed forces.
Hussein followed in his father’s footsteps by enrolling at Georgetown University in Washington, D.C., after studying history at Britain’s Sandhurst Military College.
Although she was born and bred in strict Saudi Arabia, his bride has a Western education and attended Syracuse University in New York to study design.
