Yesterday, the 25th of June was an historic day for Qatar. Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani willingly ceded power to his son Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani. Normally, the transfer of power from a living monarch is through an uprising or coup, such as Sheikh Hamad took power from his father in a bloodless coup in 1995. Also, Sheikh Tamim is the youngest ruler in the region now at the age of 33. While I may not agree with everything that Sheikh Hamad has done, I think he is a good man trying to do what is best for his country as well as the Arab region. I think his son will try to follow on the foundations his father has established. For more see here and here.
Sheikh Hamad
Sheikh Tamim
The ceremonial pomp and circumstance took place yesterday, Tuesday, which had been declared a holiday. What we didn't know was that the naming of the cabinet and other steps for the handover would carry over into today, Wednesday. We had planned to go to an exhibit about the Olympics at the Al-Riwaq Exhibition Hall. It was only on until the end of the month, but because of being pregnant & then having a baby, we had not been yet. Well, as we were driving there, we kept being diverted as the Corniche was being closed down. Instead, we ended up at the new mall that just opened by our house. Not even half of the stores are open, but we did see this guy.
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