• Minister of Defense and Aviation Sultan bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, 1930
• Director of General Intelligence Turki bin Faisal Al Saud, 1945

 

His career in public service began in 1947 when he was appointed governor of Riyadh, whose main task is resolving the disputes among the 7.000 members of royal family. Prince Sultan also assisted King Abdulaziz's attempts to establish a national administrative system based on the Islamic Sharia law during this period. In 1947, Prince Sultan oversaw ARAMCO's construction of the Kingdom's rail link between Dammam and Riyadh. He was appointed as the kingdom’s first Minister of Agriculture in 1953 and Minister of Transport in 1955.

Although his direct military experience was brief, heading the Royal Guard in Riyadh in the early 1950s, he felt a lifelong connection to the military and the cause of Saudi independence from an early age. Major General Carl Von Horn, Swedish commander of the UN observer mission during the Yemeni civil war, described the Prince as "a volatile and emotional young man" in the early days.

In 1962, King Faisal appointed Prince Sultan as Minister of Defense and Aviation. He presided over the development of the Saudi armed forces. During the reign of King Faisal, Prince Sultan was particularly interested in Yemen. His influence declined under the reign of King Khalid.

Sultan purchased U.S. tanks, fighter planes, missiles and AWACS (airborne warning and control systems). However, as a result of problems assimilating technology within its armed forces, a relatively high proportion of the military equipment is stored or under maintenance, despite a large portion of Saudi's $34 billion defense budget being spent on maintaining military equipment. Sultan allegedly became extraordinarily wealthy from kickbacks by Western businesses that handled multi - billion dollar defense contracts. He was involved in many scandals, including the Al Yamamah deal. However, his influence remained unhindered until his health began to deteriorate. During his tenure, Saudi Arabia became the largest importer of U.S. arms. He was a strong proponent of U.S. - Saudi partnership.

As well, Sultan authorized a deal with the British Aircraft Corporation (BAC) in 1965. His program, called Operation Magic Carpet, traded £16 million for six second hand Lightnings, six Hawker Hunters, and a set of missile launchers going to Royal Saudi Air Force. Geoffrey Edwards served as the official intermediary. British pilots also came over, privately contracted. Prince Sultan was an expert on the Yemen civil war and Soviet involvement in the Horn of Africa in 1985.

In 1996, Prince Sultan opposed Pentagon plans to relocate U.S. troops to safer locations after the Dhahran complex bombings. He visited Iran in May 1999 that was the first official visit of a Saudi minister since 1979.

On 13 June 1982, after the death of King Khalid, Prince Sultan was appointed to the Second Deputy Prime Minister.

Opposition to his appointment as second deputy prime minister came in particular from two other half brothers, Musaid and Bandar, both of whom, like Abdullah, were born in 1923 and therefore, were older than Prince Sultan, who was born in 1924. The objection of Prince Musaid was easy to be neglected since his son, Faisal bin Musaid, had assassinated King Faisal. However, the interests of Bandar bin Abdulaziz were much harder to ignore. Thus, he was compensated and the dispute was eliminated.

On 1 August 2005, Sultan bin Abdulaziz was designated heir apparent despite having a discord with King Abdullah.

Prince Sultan was Saudi Arabia's Inspector General. He was Chairman of the Board of Saudi Arabia's national airline, Saudi Arabian Airlines. As Chairman, he approved a ban on smoking inside all Saudi airports. In 1986, he founded the Saudi National Commission for Wildlife Conservation.

• Prince Sultan bin Abdulaziz prize for water. He was the founder and patron of the Prince Sultan bin Abdul-Aziz International Prize for Water, a bi-annual international scientific award for water research.
• Prince Sultan bin Abdulaziz Chair for environmental engineering, department of civil engineering, King Fahd University for Petroleum and Minerals. It is the first chair in the university.
• The scientific agreement between Prince Sultan bin Abdullaziz and Oxford University for academic and cultural co-operation, which supports Saudi students for bachelor, master's and Ph.D. degrees in the field of human sciences.

A non - profit charity organization, Sultan bin Abdulaziz al Saud Foundation, was set up and funded by Prince Sultan in 1995 for social objectives. The foundation includes the following centers in different countries:

• • Sultan Bin Abdulaziz Humanitarian City;
  • Sultan Bin Abdulaziz Science and Technology Center;
  • Charity housing projects;
  • Sultan Bin Abdulaziz Special Education Program at the Arabian Gulf University in Bahrain;
  • Prince Sultan Center for Speech and Hearing in Bahrain;
  • King Abdulaziz Center for Islamic Studies at Bologna University;
  • Sultan Bin Abdulaziz Arab and Islamic Studies Program at the University of California, Berkeley;

• Prince Sultan Bin Abdulaziz Private: Committee for Relief.

This private committee organizes relief and medical convoys and sets up camps to combat diseases like Malaria and blindness. It has carried out several developmental, social and medical projects, like, digging wells, building schools, public libraries, mosques, hospitals, establishing dialysis centers. It also sponsors Muslim preachers in Ethiopia, Chad, Niger, Malawi, Mali, Comoro Islands, Djibouti and Indonesia.

In April 2005, Sultan donated £2 million to the Ashmolean Museum. This is regarded as one of the most controversial donations Oxford University has received. A year after his donations to establish an art museum, Oxford University agreed to ‘expedite’ the scholarship application process for Saudi students, and identify colleges for ten Saudi students from Prince Sultan University (PSU). When this arrangement became public, it led to criticism from both academics and students stating that it was of no academic worth to the university, bypassing Oxford’s governing council, and breaching the admissions process for prospective students.

A press release issued by Oxford University on 20 April 2005, said that:

HRH Prince Sultan bin Abdulaziz al Saud has given the Ashmolean Museum a substantial donation to provide a fitting home for the Museum’s internationally renowned collection of Islamic art. The total value of the gift is £2 million, which will also provide for ten scholarships at the University of Oxford for Saudi Arabian students.

The press release added further that ‘the new gallery, part of the ambitious redevelopment of one of the world’s oldest museums, will be named the “Prince Sultan bin Abdulaziz al Saud Gallery”’. Arab News on 21 April 2005 reported that Sultan’s donation was a ‘move to promote understanding between Islam and the West’, adding that ‘Saudi and British officials’ had said that the new gallery ‘will help to portray Islamic culture and civilization in right perspectives.’

Prince Sultan had thirty - two children by his multiple wives. His eldest son Khalid bin Sultan, after Prince Sultan's death, was assigned as the Deputy Minister of Defense. Bandar bin Sultan was Secretary General of the National Security Council since 2005, and head of General Intelligence Directorate since 19 July 2012. Fahad bin Sultan was Governor of Tabuk Province. Salman bin Sultan, another son, was the Assistant Secretary General of the National Security Council. Faisal bin Sultan (born 1951) was the Secretary General of Sultan bin Abdulaziz Al Saud Foundation.

His other sons are Turki, Nayef (born 1979), Badr (born 1980), Mohammed, Saud, Ahmad, Nawwaf, Abdullah, Mishaal, Mansour, Fawwaz, Abdulmajid and Abdul Ilah.

One of his daughters, Reema, was married to Muhammad bin Nayef, son of the late Crown Prince Nayef bin Abdulaziz. His other daughter, Noura bint Sultan, was married to Turki bin Nasser. Another daughter, Munira bint Sultan who was late Faisal bin Fahd's spouse died in June 2011.

He was regarded as a workaholic with a reputation as "the epitome of corruption". His lavish spending was legendary: he doled out money at banquets in keeping with tribal custom. A conservative, it was expected that he would have put a brake on Abdullah's timid reforms, if he had become king, he was considered to be pro - American, his son, Prince Bandar, being a former U.S. envoy.

Prince Sultan’s wealth in 1990 was reported to be $1.2 billion. Later, his fortune was estimated at $270 billion, which he distributed between his sons prior to his death in October 2011 in order to support their political position in the competitive princely arena.

Prince Sultan was rumored to have had colon cancer in 2003. A foreign correspondent was forced to leave the country after reporting his health problems.

In 2004, Prince Sultan was diagnosed with colon cancer and underwent several corrective surgeries. He underwent an operation to remove an intestinal polyp in Jeddah in 2004. In April 2009, he started to suffer from Alzheimer's disease.

A leaked March 2009 diplomatic cable from WikiLeaks stated that U.S. diplomats viewed Prince Sultan as "for all intents and purposes incapacitated". He was possibly suffering dementia, specifically Alzheimer's disease.

In February 2009, Sultan spent several months in New York City at New York – Presbyterian Hospital and underwent surgery in New York. He then convalesced at Agadir, Morocco. He went back to Saudi Arabia, but soon returned to Morocco in August 2009. During his vacation, the Saudi cabinet increased officer salaries, a traditional domain of Sultan.

In 2009, King Abdullah took charge of all defense purchases and reduced the power of the Defense Ministry. In October 2010, Abdullah personally conducted much of the negotiations for the U.S. arms package worth over $60 billion.

In November 2010, Sultan received Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Al-Hariri to discuss the future of Lebanon's government. He had been receiving treatment since 2009 for what analysts and diplomats believed to be cancer. At the end of November 2010, he returned to Saudi Arabia because King Abdullah had left for the United States for surgery. His return was seen as a legal formality necessary under Saudi law, which stipulates that only one of the kingdom's top two officials can be abroad at a given time.

The Saudi Royal court announced on 22 October 2011 that Prince Sultan died at dawn of an unspecified illness. According to media reports, Prince Sultan had been battling cancer and had been seeking medical treatment in the United States since mid June 2011. He had a surgery operation in New York in July 2011. Unnamed U.S. officials cited by the The New York Times stated that he died at New York - Presbyterian Hospital in Manhattan.

His body was taken from New York City to Riyadh on 24 October 2011. His funeral was held at the Imam Turki bin Abdullah mosque in Riyadh on 25 October 2011 in the presence of King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz. His body was buried in Al Oud cemetery in Riyadh.

Various leaders, including the president of Afghanistan, Farouk al Sharaa, the vice president of Syria, the Iranian foreign minister and the head of Egypt's ruling military council, attended in the funeral. Additionally, other statesmen went to Riyadh to offer their condolences, such as the U.S. Vice President Joe Biden, Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari and Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak.

Sultan took a lifetime anti - communist and anti - Soviet view, based on his dislike of Soviet state atheism as well as Soviet interest in Gulf oil and access to ports that he felt risked Saudi independence. He rebuked U.S. President Jimmy Carter for what he saw as "pusillanimity" in the face of the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan.

In a 23 October 2001 interview in Kuwaiti newspaper As Seyassa, concerning 9/11 attacks, Sultan stated “Who stands behind this terrorism and who carried out this complicated and carefully planned terrorist operation? Osama bin Laden and those with him have said what indicates that they stand behind this carefully planned act. We, in turn, ask: Are bin Laden and his supporters the only ones behind what happened or is there another power with advanced technical expertise that acted with them?”.

From 1977 to 2001, Prince Turki was the Director General of Al Mukhabarat Al A'amah, Saudi Arabia's intelligence agency, and subsequently served as ambassador to the United Kingdom and the United States.

Prince Turki was born on 15 February 1945 in Mecca. He was the eighth and youngest son of the late King Faisal and Iffat Al-Thunayyan who died on 17 February 2000. He is full - brother of Mohammed bin Faisal, Saud bin Faisal, Luluwah bint Faisal and Haifa bint Faisal.

Turki bin Faisal received his primary and some secondary education at a school in Taif built by his parents. When he was fourteen, his father sent him to Princeton, New Jersey, to complete his secondary education at the Lawrenceville School, from which he graduated from in 1963. He then attended the Edmund A. Walsh School of Foreign Service at Georgetown University, graduating in the class of 1968 (alongside future U.S. President Bill Clinton). Turki also did post graduate work at Princeton, Cambridge, and the University of London, where he took courses in Islamic law and jurisprudence.

After returning to the Kingdom, Turki was appointed an Adviser in the Royal Court in 1973.

Prince Turki began his political career as deputy to his uncle, Kamal Adham, and then, his successor as the head of Saudi Arabia's Al Mukhabarat Al A'amah (General Intelligence Directorate), a position he held for 25 years — from 1977 until 10 days before the September 11 attacks in 2001. He took part in organizing a military operation to remove the hostage taking terrorists from Masjid al-Haram (the Sacred Mosque) in Mecca during the Grand Mosque Seizure in November – December 1979. Prince Turki's resignation was unexpected since his term had been extended on 24 May 2001 for another four years. He was replaced shortly before 9/11 by Nawaf bin Abdul Aziz.

After King Fahd's stroke in 1995, Prince Turki had a minor disagreement with Prince Abdullah, who did not want to be briefed by him.

Prince Turki has been controversially associated with al-Qaeda. As head of Saudi intelligence, he met Osama bin Laden alongside Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) operatives several times during the 1980s in efforts to support him in Afghanistan against the Soviets. Saudi intelligence joined Pakistan's intelligence service and the CIA in funding the mujahideen. Turki had met with bin Laden five times. Turki had his last meet with bin Laden in early 1990 in which bin Laden was interested in aiding against the South Yemen communists. His intelligence agency kept careful track of bin Laden from the beginning of his rise.

In 1993, he helped mediate between warring factions in Afghanistan. In early 1996, Sudan offered to extradite bin Laden to Saudi Arabia. Clinton called on Turki to bring bin Laden back to Saudi Arabia for a quick execution. Saudi Arabia denied the request and Osama left Sudan for Afghanistan.

A continued connection to bin Laden was falsely claimed by Paris Match magazine. In December 2004, Turki accepted substantial libel damages and an apology from the magazine Paris Match over claims he himself was linked to the 11 September attacks.

In 2002, Prince Turki was named in a multi - billion dollar lawsuit by the families of September 11 victims, alleging that he and other Saudi princes, banks and charities may have funded the terrorists involved in the attack. His involvement was also strongly implied in the Michael Moore documentary Fahrenheit 911. A reporter for the Baltimore Chronicle claimed he was flown out of the United States shortly after the terrorist attacks, but the claim disappeared from later versions of the article. Prince Turki described Fahrenheit 911 as "grossly unfair" to Saudis.

Prince Turki maintains that he has had no contact with bin Laden since shortly after Iraq's invasion of Kuwait in August 1990. He claims to have secretly negotiated with Taliban leader Mullah Mohammad Omar in 1998 in an attempt to have bin Laden extradited to Saudi Arabia, but the negotiations were unsuccessful. In a November 2001 interview, Turki expressed support for the US operation in Afghanistan against the Taliban and al-Qaeda. In December 2004, Turki was awarded libel damages from Paris Match for its claims that he was connected to the attacks. In 2005, a U.S. federal judge ruled that Saudi officials including Turki were immune from the lawsuit. Turki has severely criticized al-Qaeda, calling it an "evil cult."

Prince Turki bin Abdulaziz bin Faisal Al Saud served as an ambassador to the United Kingdom. He served as ambassador from January 2003 until the U.S. invasion in Iraq and was well respected by British diplomats.

In July 2005, it was announced that Prince Turki would succeed Bandar bin Sultan as Saudi ambassador to the United States. He served as ambassador to the United States from July 2005 until 11 December 2006. Adel al-Jubeir succeeded him as ambassador to the United States.

Prince Turki spent much of his time as ambassador to the United States traveling around the country (he visited 37 states). Turki strongly advocated that the United States engage in direct talks with Iran over its differences concerning Iran's involvement in Iraq, its nuclear program and support of Hezbollah in Lebanon, but other high ranking Saudi officials, including Turki's predecessor as ambassador, Prince Bandar bin Sultan, were in favor of a tougher stance, believing that, ultimately, military action would probably be required to set back Iran's alleged nuclear weapons program.

He argued that the Palestinian - Israeli issue, not Iran, was more important for the United States. He called on the Bush Administration to revive the peace process. He also argued that diplomacy with Iran is the best way to prevent problems. The Administration disliked his stance and made it difficult for him to arrange visits to the White House. The White House preferred Bandar's more aggressive approach and welcomed Bandar instead.

Prince Turki's position in Washington became increasingly untenable. Prince Bandar's repeated visits to the White House undermined Prince Turki. On top of that, Prince Turki's goal of engaging in public diplomacy with the American people was weakened because of a shortage of money to fund the embassy and his public relations program. On the other hand, there were internal disputes over the Saudi Arabia’s Iraq policy, leading to tensions between Prince Turki and other senior members of the royal family.

Turki was angered by the fact that when his own king had asked Vice President Dick Cheney to meet at short notice in Riyadh, Turki was not invited to attend — an unusual omission for Saudi summit meetings. In addition, Turki's brother — the ailing, longtime Foreign Minister Prince Saud al-Faisal, — did not write the post summit briefing for Turki; Bandar did.

King Abdullah is reported to have preferred Bandar bin Sultan as the King's intermediary between Riyadh and Washington D.C. This situation may have been one of the causes that led Turki's abrupt resignation as a protest.

He abruptly resigned in early December 2006 after only 15 months as an ambassador. His predecessor, Prince Bandar bin Sultan, worked in the same post for 22 years. Prince Turki came back in January 2007 after the Hajj Pilgrimage to formally deliver his goodbyes. In his January return trip, he reasserted Saudi Arabia's commitment to the people of Iraq and emphasized that the "health of Saudi Arabia's economy is linked to the health of Saudi Arabia's education system". Some analysts claim he intentionally attracted attention. He said he wanted to spend time with family. His resignation was initially released by the Washington Post, notably not by the royal court or any official source.

Shortly after the passing of King Faisal, Prince Turki and his siblings established the King Faisal Foundation to invest in education in Saudi Arabia.

As Chairman of King Faisal Center for Research and Islamic Studies, Prince Turki has expressed his stance on a number of issues. He compared energy independence in American politics to baby kissing. He stated that American politicians must be courageous against demagoguery. He has lauded his country's efforts in education and believes that Saudis can succeed only through education. He visited India in December 2011.

Prince Turki directly challenged Sheikh Abdullah al Turki, secretary general of the World Muslim League and a member of the Council of Senior Ulema after the 9/11 attacks. In a widely read newspaper article, he argued that “those responsible for affairs of state are the rulers,” whereas religious scholars “only act in an advisory capacity.”

On 15 October 2001, Turki, writing in Alsharq Alawsat, stated “God help us from Satan. You [Osama bin Laden] are a rotten seed like the son of Noah, ... and the flood will engulf you like it engulfed him."

In interview on Saudi TV on 5 November 2011, Turki argued “The religious edicts issued by [bin Laden] are the main evidence [for his guilt] because they call for attacking American soldiers and civilians. Only those people devoid of feelings will still ask for evidence. ... Those who still call for evidence are closing their eyes to the facts and are searching for justification of [bin Laden’s] acts.”

Prince Turki criticized equating jihad with acts of terrorism by citing the resistance against Soviets in the 1980s. He disapproved of the Obama Administration's shunning of Hamid Karzai and believed Abdullah Abdullah was not an acceptable candidate to Afghanistan's diverse ethnic groups — namely, the Pashtuns and Uzbeks. He also called for a shift in U.S. strategy from the media theme against the Taliban to a more focused propaganda campaign against Al Qaeda. He voiced his urgency to the immediate resolution of the Durand Line between Pakistan and Aghanistan. He wanted Afghan people to handle their own problems. He also expected the U.S. will continue to experience resistance as long as it stayed in Afghanistan.

On Iran, Prince Turki warned of their growing influence in Lebanon as "foreign hands manipulating strings."  Asked what he thought would be the consequences of an Israeli or U.S. attack on Iran's nuclear facilities, Prince Turki responded, "Calamitous … cataclysmic, not just catastrophic." On the Iranian nuclear program, he believes that there should be a zone free of weapons of mass destruction. He believes Iranian actions have provoked worldwide opposition but at the same time suggests that Iran's nuclear program is being singled out. He believes Iran is pursuing an "explosive" path in nuclear enrichment. He stated if Iran was attacked Saudi Arabia would never grant Israeli flyover rights.

Concerning Yemen, Prince Turki stated that Yemen has become a sanctuary for extremists as refugees flee the conflict and into the Kingdom's borders.

Regarding the Israeli occupation, Prince Turki became the Kingdom's leading critic of American foreign policy. Prince Turki reprimanded Israel for not accepting the Arab Peace Initiative, which normalizes relationship with Israel in exchange of withdrawal to 1967 borders. He described the relationship between U.S. President George W. Bush and Israel as "callous, unforgivably, and without any restraint". He accused the Obama Administration of blatant pro-Israel bias. In addition, he castigated the Obama administration for protecting Israel's nuclear program from international scrutiny and the Bush administration for undermining a Saudi brokered power sharing agreement between Fatah and Hamas. He called on U.S. President Barack Obama to "walk the walk" on the two state solution for Palestine and Israel. For relations between Israel and Saudi Arabia, he has pre-conditioned on a return to the 1967 borders.

In a Financial Times editorial in January 2009, he wrote a blasting critique of American foreign policy toward Palestine. He alleged U.S. was complicit in the deaths of Gazans.

He warned that "neocon advisers, American conservatives and Zionist extremists” promoted policies “that continually throw a wrench into the progress of peace.” He referred the 2010 United States midterm elections as it “will give more fodder for these warmongers to pursue their favorite exercise – warmongering.” However, he noted that many Democrats, as well as Republicans, were also strong supporters of Israel.

In February 2010, a diplomatic row broke out at an international security conference in Munich, Germany, between him and Israeli Deputy Foreign Minister Danny Ayalon. The Prince did not want to sit next to Ayalon because of Ayalon's "boorish" behavior in his attempt to shame Turkish ambassador on Israeli television. Ayalon then accused Saudi Arabia that the Kingdom had not "given a penny" to the Palestinian Authority. Prince Turki responded by reminding Ayalon that the Kingdom has given more than $500 million over the past five years. Ayalon apologized and shook hands with Prince Turki as a reconciliation measure. The crowd applauded. The subsequent day, Turki clarified that the gesture does not signal any change in official policy towards Israel.

In the World Economic Forum at Davos in January 2011, he called for a Middle East without WMDs and stated "the elephant in the room is Israel. Israel with a nuclear weapon is dangerous.”

Prince Turki claimed the documents "are a hodgepodge of selectivity, inaccuracy, agenda pursuit, and downright disinformation." He claimed if diplomats and leaders were not able to discuss matters that affect them through cables freely, the countries are "in trouble". He added that WikiLeaks poses a serious danger to all governments and called for meting out tough punishment for those responsible for the breach.

Around 2003, Prince Turki said that ‘reforming the Kingdom is not a choice, it is a necessity’.

In late March 2011, Prince Turki argued that elections for membership to the Saudi Shoura Council (the national majlis) should be realized and warned of a "failure in the Kingdom's job market".

Prince Turki bin Faisal was a commissioner in the International Commission on Nuclear Non-Proliferation and Disarmament. He was deputy chairman of Saudi General Authority for Civil Aviation (GACA).

He taught at Georgetown University School of Foreign Service. He was also a co-chair of the C100 Group, an affiliate of the World Economic Forum. C-100 Group encourages interfaith dialogue and cross-cultural understanding.

He visited many American universities and lectured on the history of Saudi Arabia to improve relations between the West and Saudi Arabia. He also visited the University of South Florida, Syracuse University, Rice University, Cornell University and Harvard University. In November 2010. he spoke at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace.

Prince Turki was appointed Deputy Minister of Culture and Information for Media Affairs (with the rank of minister) on 3 September 2011. He also acted as one of the top speakers of the Kingdom.

Prince Turki was married to Nouf bint Fahd bin Khalid Al Saud, with whom he had seven children: Faisal, Muneera, Noura, Abdulaziz, Saud, Mishail, and Mudhi. His son Prince Abdulaziz won the second round of Porsche Middle East Cup. His daughter Princess Noura was assistant to vice chairman of the board of trustees and general supervisor of Effat College and Dar Al Hanan School.

After resigning as US ambassador, he went to his son's graduation in London. At a University of South Florida event, he mentioned he has grandchildren and they sometimes ask him questions about Islam.

In person, Prince Turki was described as the antithesis of Bandar bin Sultan. Prince Turki was described as cool headed, soft spoken, and avuncular. He was one of the most Westernized and educated Saudi princes.

Some who knew him say Prince Turki had lingering problems that resulted from the carbon - monoxide poisoning he suffered when staying in a camper van on a desert trip in the mid 1980s.