Born in Kuwait on August 31, 1970, Her Majesty Rania Al-Abdullah has been in charge of Jordan as its queen since 1999. Rania, the wife of Jordan's King Abdullah II, utilized her royal status to promote an array of issues, such as women's and children's rights.
Born and raised in Kuwait, Her Majesty Rania came from a Palestinian family (her mother was from Nablus, and her father was from Tulkarm). She completed her elementary and senior schooling there before graduating from the American University in Cairo in 1991 with a degree in business administration. Queen Rania began her professional career working in information technology and banking. She met then Prince Abdullah at a dinner party in January 1993 and two months later, they got engaged.
Her Majesty Rania and Abdullah tied the knot on June 10, 1993, designating Rania a princess. Following the death of his father, King Hussein, in 1999, Abdullah became King of Jordan and soon after that, he made Rania the queen.
Queen Rania supported many causes throughout her reign as queen of Jordan, such as the advancement of strong Jordanian communities, the rights of women and children, and access to education. She established numerous charitable organizations and frequently appeared at both domestic and foreign gatherings. Rumour has it that she occasionally paid an unexpected visit to some of the kingdom's most isolated towns.
An Advocate of Human Rights
Around the world, Queen Rania is a supporter of empathy-building, compassion, and tolerance among individuals of different cultural backgrounds. She has gained international attention for her work to dispel misconceptions about Arabs and Muslims and to encourage mutual respect and tolerance among individuals of different cultural backgrounds and religions.
Queen Rania had recently defended the wave of anti-Israel demonstrations that have taken over US campuses, claiming that the students' true goals are justice and peace.
She did, however, concede that antisemitism is on the rise and called on Muslims everywhere to take leadership roles in the battle against it.
Rania speaks about the presence of antisemitism and how it has been on the rise. “And it is the worst kind of bigotry; it is pure hatred,” she said.
“Muslims have to be at the forefront of fighting antisemitism, because Islamophobia is the other side of the same disease, and it’s also on the rise.”
Queen Rania is a global advocate for children's high-quality education. She is also a fervent supporter of refugee rights globally, continuously drawing attention to the needs and goals of one of the most vulnerable groups in society. She has attended and participated in several relevant international conferences and summits. In 2016, she co-chaired a discussion at the UN Summit on Refugees and Migrants. She has also travelled to refugee camps in Bangladesh, Jordan, and Greece.
Queen Rania has been recognized for her work with numerous national and international honours. These include the Humanitarian Award from the Foreign Press Association, the World Childhood Award, the Vital Voices Global Trailblazer Award, the Atlantic Council Global Citizen Award, the Influential Personality of the Year Award from the Arab Social Media Influencers Summit, and the YouTube Visionary Award.