A Blog by the Editor of The Middle East Journal

Putting Middle Eastern Events in Cultural and Historical Context

Wednesday, December 2, 2009

Egypt's Last King at His Half-Sister's Funeral

The Egyptian Al-Yom al-Sabi‘ has coverage and pictures of the funeral of Princess Ferial Farouq at the Rifa‘i Mosque in Cairo last night. This one is interesting (their copyright overprint is on it, of course):

The fellow second from left is Egypt's last King, Ahmad Fuad II, Ferial's half brother (she by Queen Farida, he by Queen Nariman) who reigned for one year as an infant from exile in 1952-53. (The Free Officers at first set up a regency, and Farouq abdicated in favor of his infant son. Though Ahmad Fuad went into exile with his father, he technically was King for a year.) He's now the last surviving child of King Farouq.

What I find striking is how much he now looks like his father (even to the eyeglasses and mustache):

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