Faisal Al-Hegelan

Faisal al-Hegelan trained as a lawyer before entering Saudi diplomacy. Born in Jeddah in 1929, he graduated from Cairo's King Fuad I University in 1951 and joined the Foreign Ministry. His early assignments included Washington, Madrid, Buenos Aires, and Caracas; he also advised King Saud through the Cabinet's General Secretariat. He later headed missions in Europe and Latin America before becoming ambassador to the United States in 1979. ^{1, 2}

The Washington appointment brought al-Hegelan back to a city he knew from the 1950s. He looked forward to renewing his acquaintance with former Saudi desk officer David Newsom. He explained that he had adopted “al-Hegelan” to distinguish himself from another Saudi ambassador, Jamil al-Hujailan. He remained in Washington until 1983. ^{3, 4}

Al-Hegelan subsequently became health minister, serving from 1985 to 1995, and chaired the Saudi Red Crescent's board. He also held responsibilities at King Faisal Specialist Hospital and King Khaled Eye Specialist Hospital. He returned to the Foreign Ministry as ambassador to France in 1996, remaining until 2003. He died in Beirut in January 2019. ^{1, 2}