This year is set to be a busy one for the Jordanian royal family, with two weddings taking place.
On Sunday, Princess Iman, 26, wed Jameel Alexander Thermiotis at the family’s palace on the outskirts of Amman, walked down the aisle by her elder brother, Crown Prince Hussein bin Abdullah, 28, who will also tie the knot this year.
Prince Hussein announced his engagement last year to Rajwa Al Saif. The engagement took place at Al Saif's father's home in Riyadh. The news was announced on Twitter with four photos showing the couple together, with Prince Hussein's parents, King Abdullah II and Queen Rania, pictured alongside members of Al Saif's family.
The pair will wed on June 1, the Royal Hashemite Court announced.
As the couple prepare for their nuptials, we take a look back at some of the most high-profile Jordanian royal weddings that have come before.
1955: King Hussein and Dina bint Abdul-Hamid
On April 19, 1955, King Hussein of Jordan married his first wife, Dina bint Abdul-Hamid. The pair were distant cousins, and first met in London three years earlier, while Dina was studying at the University of Cambridge.
Their engagement was announced in 1954 by King Hussein’s mother, Queen Zein Al Sharaf. Dina became the Queen of Jordan after the pair’s wedding, and 10 months later, on February, 13, 1956, she gave birth to the king's first child, Princess Alia.
However, the marriage ended in divorce in 1957, after which Dina became known as HRH Princess Dina Abdul-Hamid of Jordan.
1961: King Hussein and Antoinette Gardiner
Four years after the end of his first marriage, King Hussein married second wife, Antoinette Gardiner, on May 29, 1961.
Antoinette, who was born in Britain, is said to have meet King Hussein while working as a secretarial assistant on the set of Lawrence of Arabia.
After the pair married, she changed her name to Princess Muna al-Hussein. Together, the couple had four children, Abdullah II of Jordan, Prince Faisal, and twins Princess Aisha and Princess Zein.
The couple divorced in 1972.
King Hussein was also married to Alia Toukan on December 24, 1972, but she died in a helicopter crash in 1977. He then married Lisa Halaby on June 15, 1978, who became Queen Noor of Jordan.
1970: Princess Basma and Timoor Daghistani
Princess Basma bint Talal of Jordan, sister of King Hussein, married Colonel Timoor Daghistani on April 2, 1970.
Together, the couple had two children: Farah Daghistani and Ghazi Daghistani.
The pair divorced in the late 1970s. Princess Basma is the paternal aunt to current King Abdullah II of Jordan.
1993: King Abdullah II of Jordan and Queen Rania
At the time of their marriage in 1993, King Abdullah II was the Jordanian Crown Prince. He first met Rania Al-Abdullah in January 1993 at a dinner party. At the time, she was working in Amman in the marketing department of Apple.
Rania, who was born in Kuwait to Palestinian parents, had moved to Jordan two years earlier. Five months after first meeting, the pair were married on June 10, 1993. The day was considered a national holiday.
Together, the couple have four children: Crown Prince Hussein, Princess Iman, Princess Salma and Prince Hashem.
2004: Prince Hamzah and Princess Noor
Prince Hamzah bin Hussein, younger brother of King Abdullah II, married his second cousin, Princess Noor bint Asem bin Nayef, at Al Baraka Palace in Amman on August 29, 2003, although an official ceremony was held the following year, on May 27, 2004.
The couple had a daughter, Princess Haya bint Hamzah, born on April 18, 2007.
They divorced in 2009.
2020: Princess Raiyah and Ned Donovan
Princess Raiyah, daughter of the late King Hussein of Jordan and Queen Noor of Jordan, married Roald Dahl's grandson, Ned Donovan, in July 2020.
The couple got engaged on October 26, 2019, and a royal statement at the time read: "The Royal Hashemite Court extends its sincere congratulations to Her Royal Highness Princess Raiyah and to Mr Donovan on this occasion."
The grandson of beloved British children's book author Roald Dahl, Donovan is a freelance journalist, and has contributed to The Spectator, New Statesman and The Telegraph. His mother is Tessa Dahl and his father is an entrepreneur, Patrick Donovan.
Donovan converted to Islam before the wedding, and took the name Faris.
2023: Princess Iman and Jameel Alexander Thermiotis
Princess Iman, the eldest daughter of King Abdullah II and Queen Rania, married Jameel Alexander Thermiotis on March 12, 2023.
The couple got engaged in July 2022 in the presence of the monarch and queen, as well as Princess Iman's three siblings and several members of Thermiotis's family.
Thermiotis was born in Caracas, Venezuela, in 1994 and is of Greek descent. He holds a bachelor's degree in business administration and works in finance in New York.
The wedding took place at the family’s palace on the outskirts of Amman in the presence of members of the royal family, friends and dignitaries. Princess Iman's elder brother, Crown Prince Hussein, walked her down the aisle.
She wore a custom Dior white gown with a lace neckline and cuffs, and a trailing veil, paired with a diamond tiara reportedly owned by her grandmother, Princess Muna Al Hussein, the mother of King Abdullah.
A version of this article was first published on July 7, 2022.
Dubai Bling season three
Cast: Loujain Adada, Zeina Khoury, Farhana Bodi, Ebraheem Al Samadi, Mona Kattan, and couples Safa & Fahad Siddiqui and DJ Bliss & Danya Mohammed
Rating: 1/5
What can victims do?
Always use only regulated platforms
Stop all transactions and communication on suspicion
Save all evidence (screenshots, chat logs, transaction IDs)
Report to local authorities
Warn others to prevent further harm
Courtesy: Crystal Intelligence
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre turbo 4-cyl
Transmission: eight-speed auto
Power: 190bhp
Torque: 300Nm
Price: Dh169,900
On sale: now
Real estate tokenisation project
Dubai launched the pilot phase of its real estate tokenisation project last month.
The initiative focuses on converting real estate assets into digital tokens recorded on blockchain technology and helps in streamlining the process of buying, selling and investing, the Dubai Land Department said.
Dubai’s real estate tokenisation market is projected to reach Dh60 billion ($16.33 billion) by 2033, representing 7 per cent of the emirate’s total property transactions, according to the DLD.
The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo
Power: 261hp at 5,500rpm
Torque: 405Nm at 1,750-3,500rpm
Transmission: 9-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 6.9L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh117,059
The%20specs
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The five pillars of Islam
57%20Seconds
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Andor
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ECreator%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Tony%20Gilroy%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EStars%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EDiego%20Luna%2C%20Genevieve%20O'Reilly%2C%20Alex%20Ferns%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ERating%3A%205%3C%2Fstrong%3E%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
The specs
Engine: Four electric motors, one at each wheel
Power: 579hp
Torque: 859Nm
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Price: From Dh825,900
On sale: Now
Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
- Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
- Flexible payment plans from developers
- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
The specs
Engine: 3.0-litre six-cylinder turbo
Power: 398hp from 5,250rpm
Torque: 580Nm at 1,900-4,800rpm
Transmission: Eight-speed auto
Fuel economy, combined: 6.5L/100km
On sale: December
Price: From Dh330,000 (estimate)
The specs
- Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
- Power: 640hp
- Torque: 760nm
- On sale: 2026
- Price: Not announced yet
Specs
Engine: Electric motor generating 54.2kWh (Cooper SE and Aceman SE), 64.6kW (Countryman All4 SE)
Power: 218hp (Cooper and Aceman), 313hp (Countryman)
Torque: 330Nm (Cooper and Aceman), 494Nm (Countryman)
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh158,000 (Cooper), Dh168,000 (Aceman), Dh190,000 (Countryman)
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
About Takalam
Date started: early 2020
Founders: Khawla Hammad and Inas Abu Shashieh
Based: Abu Dhabi
Sector: HealthTech and wellness
Number of staff: 4
Funding to date: Bootstrapped
Conflict, drought, famine
Estimates of the number of deaths caused by the famine range from 400,000 to 1 million, according to a document prepared for the UK House of Lords in 2024.
It has been claimed that the policies of the Ethiopian government, which took control after deposing Emperor Haile Selassie in a military-led revolution in 1974, contributed to the scale of the famine.
Dr Miriam Bradley, senior lecturer in humanitarian studies at the University of Manchester, has argued that, by the early 1980s, “several government policies combined to cause, rather than prevent, a famine which lasted from 1983 to 1985. Mengistu’s government imposed Stalinist-model agricultural policies involving forced collectivisation and villagisation [relocation of communities into planned villages].
The West became aware of the catastrophe through a series of BBC News reports by journalist Michael Buerk in October 1984 describing a “biblical famine” and containing graphic images of thousands of people, including children, facing starvation.
Band Aid
Bob Geldof, singer with the Irish rock group The Boomtown Rats, formed Band Aid in response to the horrific images shown in the news broadcasts.
With Midge Ure of the band Ultravox, he wrote the hit charity single Do They Know it’s Christmas in December 1984, featuring a string of high-profile musicians.
Following the single’s success, the idea to stage a rock concert evolved.
Live Aid was a series of simultaneous concerts that took place at Wembley Stadium in London, John F Kennedy Stadium in Philadelphia, the US, and at various other venues across the world.
The combined event was broadcast to an estimated worldwide audience of 1.5 billion.
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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Jetour T1 specs
Engine: 2-litre turbocharged
Power: 254hp
Torque: 390Nm
Price: From Dh126,000
Available: Now
CHATGPT%20ENTERPRISE%20FEATURES
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It Was Just an Accident
Director: Jafar Panahi
Stars: Vahid Mobasseri, Mariam Afshari, Ebrahim Azizi, Hadis Pakbaten, Majid Panahi, Mohamad Ali Elyasmehr
Rating: 4/5
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Our family matters legal consultant
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Kumulus Water
Started: 2021
Founders: Iheb Triki and Mohamed Ali Abid
Based: Tunisia
Sector: Water technology
Number of staff: 22
Investment raised: $4 million
Essentials
The flights
Emirates and Etihad fly direct from the UAE to Geneva from Dh2,845 return, including taxes. The flight takes 6 hours.
The package
Clinique La Prairie offers a variety of programmes. A six-night Master Detox costs from 14,900 Swiss francs (Dh57,655), including all food, accommodation and a set schedule of medical consultations and spa treatments.
Tearful appearance
Chancellor Rachel Reeves set markets on edge as she appeared visibly distraught in parliament on Wednesday.
Legislative setbacks for the government have blown a new hole in the budgetary calculations at a time when the deficit is stubbornly large and the economy is struggling to grow.
She appeared with Keir Starmer on Thursday and the pair embraced, but he had failed to give her his backing as she cried a day earlier.
A spokesman said her upset demeanour was due to a personal matter.
Labour dispute
The insured employee may still file an ILOE claim even if a labour dispute is ongoing post termination, but the insurer may suspend or reject payment, until the courts resolve the dispute, especially if the reason for termination is contested. The outcome of the labour court proceedings can directly affect eligibility.
- Abdullah Ishnaneh, Partner, BSA Law
In numbers: PKK’s money network in Europe
Germany: PKK collectors typically bring in $18 million in cash a year – amount has trebled since 2010
Revolutionary tax: Investigators say about $2 million a year raised from ‘tax collection’ around Marseille
Extortion: Gunman convicted in 2023 of demanding $10,000 from Kurdish businessman in Stockholm
Drug trade: PKK income claimed by Turkish anti-drugs force in 2024 to be as high as $500 million a year
Denmark: PKK one of two terrorist groups along with Iranian separatists ASMLA to raise “two-digit million amounts”
Contributions: Hundreds of euros expected from typical Kurdish families and thousands from business owners
TV channel: Kurdish Roj TV accounts frozen and went bankrupt after Denmark fined it more than $1 million over PKK links in 2013
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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The National's picks
4.35pm: Tilal Al Khalediah
5.10pm: Continous
5.45pm: Raging Torrent
6.20pm: West Acre
7pm: Flood Zone
7.40pm: Straight No Chaser
8.15pm: Romantic Warrior
8.50pm: Calandogan
9.30pm: Forever Young
The burning issue
The internal combustion engine is facing a watershed moment – major manufacturer Volvo is to stop producing petroleum-powered vehicles by 2021 and countries in Europe, including the UK, have vowed to ban their sale before 2040. The National takes a look at the story of one of the most successful technologies of the last 100 years and how it has impacted life in the UAE.
Read part four: an affection for classic cars lives on
Read part three: the age of the electric vehicle begins
Read part one: how cars came to the UAE
MATCH INFO
BRIGHTON 0
MANCHESTER UNITED 3
McTominay 44'
Mata 73'
Pogba 80'
Bib%20Gourmand%20restaurants
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