Prince Talal's funeral prayer to be held on Sunday

The funeral prayer for Prince Talal Bin Abdul Aziz will be held at Imam Turki Bin Abdullah Mosque in Riyadh after Asr prayer on Sunday, a Royal Court statement carried by the Saudi Press Agency said.

Prince Talal, 88, died on Saturday.

Prince Abdul Aziz Bin Talal said on Twitter that family members will accept condolences at Al-Fakhiriyah district in Riyadh between Maghreb and Isha prayers from Sunday until Tuesday.

Prince Talal, a senior member of the Royal Family, was the brother of Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman and father of Prince Al-Waleed Bin Talal. He was born on 15 Aug. 1931 (1 Rabi Al-Thani, 1350H) as the 12th son of King Abdul Aziz.

Prince Talal had held many senior government positions in the Kingdom. In 1952, King Abdul Aziz appointed him as the Kingdom’s first minister of communications. He remained in charge until 1955 when he was appointed deputy minister of finance and in 1960 he was appointed minister of finance and national economy. Later, he served as the Kingdom’s ambassador to France.

Apart from his political career, Prince Talal spent much of his life serving the poor and children, especially during his tenure as United Nations Special Envoy.

He continued his good efforts by



launching the Arab Gulf Children’s Program. He was the president of the Arab Council for Childhood and Development.

A well-known philanthropist, Prince Talal offered education scholarships to Saudi students. He was the founder of the Kingdom’s first school for vocational training in 1954 and the first girls’ school in Riyadh in 1957.

He was instrumental in the creation of the Arab Open University.

In 1980, Prince Talal established the Arab Gulf Program for the United Nations Development (AGFUND) to support sustainable human development efforts in the developing world, especially in the Middle East.

Serving as chairman of AGFUND, he supported the training of women, and established, in cooperation with international partners, a number of local, Arab and international organizations.

King Salman received on Saturday cables of condolences from a number of heads of state and leaders of Arab countries, expressing their deep sorrow on the death of Prince Talal.

The leaders who sent cables included King Abdullah of Jordan, Sultan Qaboos Bin Said of Oman, Emir of Kuwait Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmed Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, Kuwait’s Crown Prince Sheikh Nawaf Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, and Prime Minister Sheikh Jaber Mubarak Al-Hamad Al-Sabah.