Kamal Adham
Encyclopedia
Kamal Adham was a former Director General of Saudi Arabia
's Al Mukhabarat Al A'amah
, General Intelligence Directorate
. He was the younger half-brother of Princess Iffat Al-Thuniyyan Al Saud.
. An early companion of the future ruler, Adham performed more than was required of a family member, even if his upbringing endowed him with undeniable attributes.
The young Adham was fluent in four languages — Arabic
, Turkish
, English
and French
— and, more important, loyal to both his sister and brother-in-law. In fact, he advised the ruler on the kingdom's foreign policy
interests at a time when severe internal disputes polarised the Al Saud. Adham acted as a liaison between the GID, which reported to the king, and key Western intelligence services. More important, he fostered and maintained nascent ties with several Arab intelligence services, as many were slowly creating independent institutions to serve their respective governments.
Saudi Arabia
The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia , commonly known in British English as Saudi Arabia and in Arabic as as-Sa‘ūdiyyah , is the largest state in Western Asia by land area, constituting the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and the second-largest in the Arab World...
's Al Mukhabarat Al A'amah
Al Mukhabarat Al A'amah
The Ri'āsat Al-Istikhbārāt Al-'Āmah , or the General Intelligence Presidency , is the primary intelligence agency of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.- History :...
, General Intelligence Directorate
General Intelligence Directorate
The Intelligence Directorate is the main state intelligence agency of the government of Cuba. The DI, under the big umbrella of the MININT, was founded in late 1961 by Cuba's Ministry of the Interior shortly after the Cuban Revolution...
. He was the younger half-brother of Princess Iffat Al-Thuniyyan Al Saud.
Childhood training
Princess Iffat's Turkish-born half-brother was raised by King FaisalKing Faisal
-People:* Faisal of Saudi Arabia * Faisal I of Iraq , king of Greater Syria and king of Iraq* Faisal II of Iraq Iraq's last king-Other:*King Faisal Airbase, Tabuk, Saudi Arabia...
. An early companion of the future ruler, Adham performed more than was required of a family member, even if his upbringing endowed him with undeniable attributes.
The young Adham was fluent in four languages — Arabic
Arabic language
Arabic is a name applied to the descendants of the Classical Arabic language of the 6th century AD, used most prominently in the Quran, the Islamic Holy Book...
, Turkish
Turkish language
Turkish is a language spoken as a native language by over 83 million people worldwide, making it the most commonly spoken of the Turkic languages. Its speakers are located predominantly in Turkey and Northern Cyprus with smaller groups in Iraq, Greece, Bulgaria, the Republic of Macedonia, Kosovo,...
, English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
and French
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
— and, more important, loyal to both his sister and brother-in-law. In fact, he advised the ruler on the kingdom's foreign policy
Foreign policy
A country's foreign policy, also called the foreign relations policy, consists of self-interest strategies chosen by the state to safeguard its national interests and to achieve its goals within international relations milieu. The approaches are strategically employed to interact with other countries...
interests at a time when severe internal disputes polarised the Al Saud. Adham acted as a liaison between the GID, which reported to the king, and key Western intelligence services. More important, he fostered and maintained nascent ties with several Arab intelligence services, as many were slowly creating independent institutions to serve their respective governments.