A00082 - Hamad ibn Khalifah al-Thani, Emir Qatar

Ḥamad ibn Khalīfa al-Thānī took power from his father, Sheikh Khalifa ibn Hamad al-Thani, who had become Qatar’s leader just months after the country won independence from Great Britain in 1972. In 2013, Ḥamad abdicated in favor of his son Sheikh Tamim.

Ḥamad was born into a family that at the time had ruled the country for a century. He was educated in Qatar and in England at the Royal Military Academy at Sandhurst and became a lieutenant colonel in Qatar’s military after graduating in 1971. He was promoted in 1975 to major general and commander in chief of the armed forces, and in 1977 he became minister of defense as well as heir apparent to the throne. Following the Persian Gulf War (1990–91), Ḥamad was, for most purposes, leading the country, and in 1995 he staged a coup and ousted his father while the latter was traveling outside Qatar. Ḥamad himself survived a number of subsequent coup attempts and succeeded in returning to the government a portion of the estimated $3 billion–$7 billion in gas and oil profits his father had held in personal bank accounts.

By 2000, Ḥamad had instituted a number of policies that transformed the country. He moved to allow Qataris to participate more actively in the government and to promote greater equality for women. After becoming ruler he announced plans to establish an elected parliament, appointed a committee to draft a permanent constitution, largely abolished censorship of the press, and in 1999 held the country’s first open general elections for a municipal council. For the first time, women not only were allowed to vote but, even more revolutionary, were also allowed to run for office. 

In June 2013, Ḥamad announced his abdication in favour of his 33-year-old son Tamim, the crown prince, citing the need to make way for a new generation of Qatari leaders. The transfer of power was seen as unusual for the Gulf Arab region, where rulers typically occupied their positions for life.

A00081 - Khalifa ibn Hamad al-Thani, Emir of Qatar

Khalīfa ibn Hạmad al-Thāni, (b. 1932, Al-Rayyān, Qatar — d. October 23, 2016) was the amīr of Qatar from 1972 to 95.  He came to power five months after Qatar became a sovereign independent state (September 1971).

In the 1950s and 1960s, Sheikh Khalīfa held numerous governmental posts, including chief of security forces, director of education, and minister of finance and petroleum affairs. He became amīr in February 1972 by deposing his cousin Sheikh Aḥmad, whose profligate spending habits had aroused popular opposition. Khalīfa’s family, including his sons and brothers, virtually controlled the government, holding 10 of 15 ministries in 1975.

As amīr, Khalīfa tried to direct and control the process of modernization stimulated by the boom in oil production. His economic policy was to diversify the economy by vastly expanding the agricultural sector and by building fertilizer plants and other new industries. Although political parties and labor unions were banned in 1976, Khalīfa ruled by decree within the framework of a written constitution and Islāmic law (sharia).

Following the Persian Gulf War (1990–91), in which Qatari troops participated, Khalīfa left daily governing to his sons, one of whom, Sheikh Hạmad ibn Khalīfa al-Thāni, installed himself as amīr by staging a peaceful coup in June 1995, while Khalīfa was traveling abroad.

Khalifa lived in France until he returned to Qatar in 2004 and led a low profile life. He died on October 23, 2016, a week after entering the hospital.