Jordanian prince, brother of late King Hussein, dies at 80

Amman: Jordan’s Prince Mohammad bin Talal, the younger brother of the late King Hussein who served as his crown prince for 10 years, died on Thursday at the age of 80, the royal palace said.

The prince had held several senior positions in Jordan’s monarchy, including as personal representative to King Abdullah II, who succeeded Hussein after his death in 1999.

Prince Mohammad was born in the Jordanian capital of Amman on October 2, 1940. He is survived by his wife, Princess Taghrid, and two sons from a previous marriage. His funeral will be held on Friday.

His death comes at a difficult time for the monarchy, a close Western ally that has long been seen as a bastion of stability but has struggled to contain the health and economic fallout from the COVID-19 pandemic.

Earlier this month, the monarchy was rocked by a rare public feud after Prince Hamzah, the half-brother of Abdullah, was placed under a form of house arrest and accused of being involved in a foreign-backed plot.

Hamzah claimed authorities were trying to silence his criticism of corruption and poor governance.

Days later, Abdullah announced that the “sedition” had been “nipped in the bud” and that the feud with Hamzah had been resolved within the royal family.