By AFP
Middle East Times
Published August 30, 2007
Bahrain’s King Hamad bin Issa Al Khalifa returned home Wednesday after a stay of one-and-a-half months in Britain during which he underwent medical tests, and declared he was fit, official media said.
“Thanks to God, they [tests] went as well as we would like them to,” the monarch said in a message to the nation, quoted by the BNA news agency.
A senior Bahraini official told AFP that King Hamad, 57, was “in very good health” after undergoing the tests in London.
This was the first official word in Bahrain that the king had undergone medical tests, but there was no information on what prompted them.
By AFP
Middle East Times
Published August 30, 2007
Bahrain’s King Hamad bin Issa Al Khalifa returned home Wednesday after a stay of one-and-a-half months in Britain during which he underwent medical tests, and declared he was fit, official media said.
“Thanks to God, they [tests] went as well as we would like them to,” the monarch said in a message to the nation, quoted by the BNA news agency.
A senior Bahraini official told AFP that King Hamad, 57, was “in very good health” after undergoing the tests in London.
This was the first official word in Bahrain that the king had undergone medical tests, but there was no information on what prompted them.
His absence was the longest since he became ruler in 1999.
The Gulf archipelago of Bahrain is a close US ally, and hosts the US Navy’s Fifth Fleet.
“During this past period, I held many fruitful meetings whose results will benefit the kingdom of Bahrain and its people,” Hamad said.
He did not elaborate, but the king is known to have received a stream of elected lawmakers and members of the appointed upper house during his stay in London, notably Shiite opposition leader Sheikh Ali Salman.
Bahrain, which is ruled by the Sunni Al Khalifa dynasty, is the only Gulf monarchy with a Shiite majority.
Born in January 1950, Hamad became emir on the death of his aged father, Sheikh Issa Bin Salman Al Khalifa, in March 1999.
As part of the reforms, Bahrain was declared a kingdom ruled by a constitutional monarchy in February 2002, and Hamad became king.
