Princess Alia Bint Al Hussein of Jordan has released a statement thanking everyone for their support and condolences after the death of her mother, Jordan’s former Queen, Dina bint Abdul-Hamid who died at the age of 89 on 21 August 2019. Alia is the eldest child of the late King Hussein and half-sister of Jordan’s current monarch, King Abdullah.
Dina was buried, as part of Muslim tradition, within 24 hours of her death. King Abdullah and Crown Prince Hussein attended the funeral at the Royal Cemetery.
In her statement, Princess Alia said, “I would like to thank everyone who has expressed their condolences on the passing of my mother. The support and love from members of my beloved family and also from dear friends and others who simply empathised, for myself and my children, has been overwhelming, and my heart is full of gratitude.
“Love of family and the coming together of people in a good way were things my mother valued extremely highly and always worked towards – regardless of differences of perspective and the daily worldly silliness which pale in the face of what is real and important, and I am so grateful that in her passing she was once again a means for causing that to be demonstrated so wonderfully.”
King Hussein and Queen Dina were only married for two years between 1955-1957. The couple divorced in 1957 and Dina was given the title and rank of a Princess of Jordan. She lived a quiet life in Jordan and she remarried in 1970 to Lieutenant-Colonel Asad Sulayman Abd al-Qadir, a high-ranking official in the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO). When he was imprisoned by the Israelis in 1982, Dina negotiated his return via a prisoner exchange.
King Hussein married three more times (Princess Muna Al-Hussein – the mother of the current King of Jordan, Queen Alia and Queen Noor) and had 11 children. He passed away in 1999.
