Saudi Arabia's Prince Turki pays tribute to Prince Saud Al Faisal
“He was gentle, amiable and friendly, may God have mercy on him.”
Abu Dhabi: Prince Turki Al Faisal, a former Saudi intelligence chief, paid tribute to Prince Saud Al Abdullah Al Faisal, who passed away last week.
“A few days ago, my nephew and my friend, His Royal Highness Prince Saud Al-Abdullah Al Faisal, left us, after suffering from Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), a group of rare neurological diseases that mainly involve the nerve cells responsible for controlling voluntary muscle movement,” Prince Turki said.
“May Almighty Allah have mercy on him and [give him a place] in paradise.”
Naughty boy
The Veteran Saudi diplomat continued: “He was a naughty boy who specialised in playing truant and staying away from schools where he was admitted by my late brother Abdullah Al Faisal.
He started from the Egyptian College of Victory established by the British during the British colonial era in Egypt, when he was 10 years old, he used to [escape] from it and go to the lobby of a famous hotel in Cairo, sitting with hotel guests and inviting them for talk and sipping refreshments provided by the hotel, in the way, his father, may Allah have mercy on him, in his majlis in Jeddah.
Even after his father sent him to study at a boarding school in the United States an hour away from New York City by train, he excelled in escaping from the school to that city by taking the train.”
Cinema and theatre
Prince Saud Al Abdullah Al Faisal loved the cinema and theatre too with Prince Turki adding, “In the bustling city, he was heading to Street no. 42, where there are cinema theatres, and moving from one theatre to another until the city police found him after being reported to have escaped and returned to school. With this naughtiness, he was gentle, amiable and friendly, may God have mercy on him. His face, especially his eyes, was glowing with happiness, so when he smiled, onlookers only had to smile back to him.”
British Military Academy Sandhurst He developed military discipline when he joined the British Military Academy Sandhurst. “[He gained] three years of extreme military discipline. At the rank of second lieutenant, he joined what was then called the Air Defense Force and remained a disciplined military teacher in the Air Defense Institute. Then, he studied several courses to gain more military sciences, climbing up the ranks and ending as a captain in the Ministry of Defense, before he resigned from the military to accompany his father in his business,” continued Prince Turki.
Compassionate man
“Throughout his [life] , he was compassionate, not only towards his relatives, but for all his friends and acquaintances, so that no wedding party of a member of their families or any other family gathering is held without him being the first guest and greeter. No one of those close to him died without him being the first mourner. In all forms of his life, he continued to open his majlis to anyone. He welcomed them with a radiant smile with joy, talked with them, and then shared dinner with them. He was honest in words and deed, self-esteemed and generous. All those who knew him testified to his chivalry and intelligence.
May Almighty Allah have mercy on you, great mercy on you, my nephew, and dwell you in spacious heavens,” concluded Prince Turki.