Hamad bin Isa bin Salman Al Khalifa is King of Bahrain since 14 February 2002, after ruling as Emir of Bahrain from 6 March 1999. He is the son of Isa bin Salman Al Khalifa, the previous and first emir. The country has been ruled by the Al Khalifa dynasty since 1783.
King Hamad in 2016
The Leys School, Cambridge
Sultan bin Abdulaziz and Hamad bin Isa in the 1980s
King Hamad in 2003 with Donald H. Rumsfeld
The King of the Kingdom of Bahrain is the monarch and head of state of the Kingdom of Bahrain. The House of Khalifa has been the ruling family since 1783. Between 1783 and 1971, the Bahraini monarch held the title of hakim, and, from 1971 until 2002, the title of emir. On 14 February 2002, the emir of Bahrain, Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa, declared Bahrain a kingdom and proclaimed himself the first king. The king enjoys wide ranging powers, which include appointing the prime minister and the cabinet, holding supreme command over the Defence Force, chairing the Higher Judicial Council, appointing the parliament's upper house and dissolving its elected lower house.
King of Bahrain
Image: Isa bin Salman Al Khalifa 1998
Image: Isa bin Salman Al Khalifa 1998
Image: Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa April 2016