Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan served as president of the United Arab Emirates, emir of Abu Dhabi, and supreme commander of the UAE Armed Forces.

From the late 1980s to the present, he served as chairman of the Supreme Petroleum Council.

When his father, Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, suffered health issues in the late 1990s, Khalifa assumed several functions of the presidency in a de facto capacity as crown prince.

On November 2, 2004, he took over as emir of Abu Dhabi and the presidency of the United Arab Emirates from his father.

He was one of the world’s wealthiest kings throughout his reign.

Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, his half-brother, was in charge of the state’s public affairs and day-to-day decision-making in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi.  Khalifa passed away on May 13, 2022.

Hassa bint Mohammed Al Nahyan

Sheikha Hassa bint Mohammed bin Khalifa Al Nahyan was the first wife of Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, the founder and first President of the United Arab Emirates.

Sheikh Khalifa II, the current president of the United Arab Emirates and emir of Abu Dhabi, was her son (born 1948).

Sheikh Mohammed bin Khalifa Al Nahyan, her father, was her husband’s first cousin and a key member of the House of Al Nahyan until his death in 1979.

Sheikha Hassa bint Saqr Al Nahyan, who was also Sheikh Zayed’s first cousin, was her mother.

As a result, Sheikha Hassa bint Mohammed and her husband, Sheikh Zayed, were once-removed double first cousins.