This Day in History: 25 March 2020
25 March 1975
45 years ago, today, King Faisal of Saudi Arabia was assassinated by his nephew, Prince Faisal. King Faisal, the son of King Ibn Saud, had fought in the military campaigns of the 1920s and 1930s that helped create modern Saudi Arabia. Later on, he served as Saudi ambassador to the United Nations, and in 1953, was made premier upon the ascension of his older brother, Saud. More than a decade later, unfortunately, his brother was pressured to abdicate, resulting in Faisal becoming the ruler. While King, he aimed to modernise the nation, while lending financial and moral support to anti-Israeli causes in the Middle East.
However, things took a turn for the worse at the Royal Palace in Riyadh, where the King was holding a reception. His nephew joined the Kuwaiti delegation that had lined up to meet Faisal, who recognised the prince immediately, and so bent his head forward for his nephew to kiss him, as a sign of respect. Instead, Prince Faisal took out a revolver from his robe and shot the King twice in the head. The third shot missed, inconsequentially, and the prince threw the gun away, as the King fell to the floor. His nephew would have been murdered by royal bodyguards, if it was not for Saudi oil minister, Ahmed Zaki Yamani, who yelled repeatedly not to kill the prince. However, Prince Faisal was still arrested, and beheaded in the public square of Riyadh. The king's body was buried the next day, and his successor, King Khalid, wept over his body at the funeral.
Want to find out more about the life of King Faisal and his assassination? Click here for more information.
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