Khalifa bin Salman Al Khalifa
Prince Khalifa bin Salman Al Khalifa (Arabic: خليفة بن سلمان آل خليفة) (born 24 November 1935)[1] is a Bahraini royal and politician who has served as the Prime Minister of Bahrain since 1970, taking office over a year before Bahrain's independence on 15 August 1971.[2] He is the longest-serving current Prime Minister of any government in the world. He still retains a great amount of power, although under the 2002 Constitution he lost some of his powers, with the King having the authority to appoint and (along with the Bahraini parliament) dismiss ministers. He is the paternal uncle of the reigning King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa and granduncle of the Crown Prince Salman, since he is the younger brother of the former Emir Isa bin Salman Al Khalifa.
Prince Khalifa bin Salman Al Khalifa خليفة بن سلمان آل خليفة | |
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1st Prime Minister of Bahrain | |
Assumed office 19 January 1970 | |
Monarch | Isa bin Salman Al Khalifa Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa |
Deputy | Jawad Al-Arrayedh Muhammad ibn Mubarak ibn Hamad Al Khalifah Khalid bin Abdullah Al Khalifa Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa Ali bin Khalifa Al Khalifa |
Preceded by | position established |
Personal details | |
Born | Khalifa bin Salman Al Khalifa 24 November 1935 Jasra, Bahrain |
Spouse(s) | Hessa bint Ali Al Khalifa |
Children | 4 |
Mother | Mouza bint Hamad Al Khalifa |
Father | Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa I |
Early life and education
Prince Khalifa was born in Bahrain, the second son of Salman ibn Hamad Al Khalifa, Hakim of Bahrain, and wife Mouza bint Hamad Al Khalifa.[3] He was educated at Manama High School and Rifa’a Palace School in Bahrain.
Career
Prince Khalifa was a member of the education council from 1956 to 1958 and chair between 1958 and 1961. Next he became the director of the finance department (1961–1966), president of the electricity board (1961), chair of the Manama municipal council (1962–1967), head of the Bahrain monetary council (1964), chair of the joint committee for economic and financial studies, committee member for the register of commerce, then chairman of the administrative affairs council (1967–1969), became board member of the Bahrain monetary agency and then chairperson of the State Council (1972–1974), head of the State Council (1972) and head of the supreme defence council (1977). Prince Khalifa was appointed as prime minister by his brother Emir Isa bin Salman Al Khalifa, in 1971. Therefore, he was assigned the control of government and economy, while his brother, the Emir, involved in diplomatic and ceremonial affairs.[4]Prince Khalifa received World Peace Culture Award on 06 August 2017.
Views
In 2011, reporter Bill Law stated that Prince Khalifa is a hardliner, whereas Crown Prince Salman, his grandnephew who is also his Deputy Prime Minister, the grandson of his brother, the late Emir Isa, is the reformer and the King, his nephew and Crown Prince Salman's father, is somewhere in the middle of them.[5]
Marriage and children
Prince Khalifa married his cousin Hessa bint Ali Al Khalifa, the fourth daughter of Ali bin Hamad Al Khalifa in Muharraq. They had three sons and one daughter:
- Mohammad bin Khalifa Al Khalifa (-1974).
- Ali bin Khalifa Al Khalifa – Deputy Prime Minister. He married Zayn bint Khalid Al Khalifa with whom he has three sons and one daughter:
- Khalifa bin Ali Al Khalifa
- Isa bin Ali Al Khalifa
- Minwa bint Ali Al Khalifa
- Khalid bin Ali Al Khalifa
- Salman bin Khalifa Al Khalifa
- Lulwa bint Khalifa Al Khalifa – honorary president of the Al Noor beneficence society. She married Rashid bin Khalifa Al Khalifa (1952-), artist and patron of the arts. They have three sons and three daughters.
Other relatives
Shaikha Dheya bint Ebrahim Al Khalifa - niece of Prince Khalifa and President of Riyada Group of Companies. Famous for her business activities as a member of the Royal family and Head of Riyada Group in Russia. She has political and business contacts with Russian Ministries, business community, engineering companies. In 2014 during Rhodian Forum gave an opinion on the beginning of the Third World War and the necessity of the dialogue.
Titles, styles and honours
Styles of Khalifa bin Salman | |
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Reference style | His Royal Highness |
Spoken style | Your Royal Highness |
Titles and styles
- 24 November 1935 – 20 February 1942: Sheikh Khalifa bin Salman Al Khalifa
- 20 February 1942 – 21 October 2009: His Excellency Sheikh Khalifa bin Salman Al Khalifa
- 21 October 2009 – present: His Royal Highness Prince Khalifa bin Salman Al Khalifa
Prince Khalifa was raised to the personal title of Prince with the style of "His Royal Highness" on 21 October 2009.
Honours
National
- Member 1st Class of the Order of Khalifa (19 October 1976)
- Collar of the Order of Khalifa (19 December 1979)
- Member Exceptional Class of the Order of Shaikh 'Isa bin Salman al-Khalifa (21 October 2009)
- Member 1st Class of the King Hamad Order of the Renaissance (13 December 2009)
Foreign
Iraq: Member 2nd Class of the Order of the Two Rivers (3 April 1952) Denmark: Commander 1st Class of the Order of the Dannebrog (1957) Lebanon: Grand Officer of the National Order of the Cedar (1958) Spain: Knight Grand Cross of the Order of Isabella the Catholic (4 December 1981)[6] Jordan: Grand Cordon of the Supreme Order of the Renaissance (30 January 1999) Malaysia: Honorary Grand Commander of the Order of the Defender of the Realm (SMN, 30 January 2001)[7] Philippines: Grand Collar of the Order of Sikatuna (11 November 2001) Thailand: Knight Grand Cordon (First Class) of the Order of the White Elephant (12 April 2003) France: Grand Officer of the Legion of Honour (21 February 2004) Morocco: Grand Cross of the Order of Ouissam Alaouite (23 March 2004) Philippines: Grand Collar of the Order of Lakandula (4 January 2007)
References
- "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2019-11-09. Retrieved 2019-11-25.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
- [CIA World Factbook, 1999]
- Kingdom of Bahrain Ministry of Foreign Affairs. "H.R.H. the Prime Minister". www.mofa.gov.bh. Archived from the original on 22 March 2017. Retrieved 21 March 2017.
- Wright, Steven (2008). "Fixing the Kingdom: Political Evolution and Socio-Economic Challenges in Bahrain" (PDF). CIRS. Archived (PDF) from the original on 3 July 2012. Retrieved 10 April 2013.
- Law, Bill (16 March 2011). "Splits inside Bahrain's ruling al-Khalifah family". BBC. Archived from the original on 11 June 2012. Retrieved 14 April 2013.
- "Boletín Oficial del Estado" (PDF). Archived (PDF) from the original on 2013-10-03. Retrieved 2015-02-01.
- "Senarai Penuh Penerima Darjah Kebesaran, Bintang dan Pingat Persekutuan Tahun 2001" (PDF).
External links
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Khalifa ibn Salman Al Khalifa. |
- Khalifa's biography – official website of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Kingdom of Bahrain
- Bahrainprimeminister.net – website about Khalifa and his family
- Works by or about Khalifa bin Salman Al Khalifa in libraries (WorldCat catalog)
Political offices | ||
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New office | Prime Minister of Bahrain 1970–present |
Incumbent |