Amman – Jordan’s Crown Prince Hussein bin Abdullah married Saudi architect Rajwa Al Saif on Thursday in a wedding attended by royals from across the globe.
The ceremony took place in the mid-century Zahran Psaudalace in the capital Amman – the scene of other key Hashemite kingdom weddings including that of king Abdullah II to queen Rania and also that of the monarch’s father, the late King Hussein bin Talal.
The king’s eldest son and Al Saif, both aged 28, tied the knot at a ceremony attended by their families and 140 guests, including US first lady Jill Biden and Britain’s prince and princess of Wales, William and Kate, who made a surprise appearance.
King Abdullah II, aged 61 and on the throne since 1999, has long groomed his eldest son to succeed him, bringing him on important visits and to meetings, former information minister Samih Maaytah previously told AFP. Prince Hussein became heir to the throne in 2009.
The newly titled princess Rajwa was born in Riyadh. She descends from the Al Sudayri family of Najd in what became modern day Saudi Arabia, known to be closely linked to the Saudi royal family.
Wedding motorcade
The highly anticipated nuptials were met by celebrations across Jordan, with thousands gathering to witness the procession in Amman in streets decorated for the occasion with pictures of the couple and banners.
A royal red motorcade, reserved for special occasions, crossed the capital from Zahran Palace in the center to Husseiniya Palace in the west.
Rajwa was born and raised in Saudi Arabia but is also Western-educated, having studied architecture in New York.
Jordan enjoys relative stability compared to its Middle East neighbours. But the World Bank says Jordan is heavily in debt and faces around 23% unemployment.
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