Princess Fadzilah Lubabul, the daughter of the Sultan of Brunei, has married her Iraqi partner, Abdullah Nabil Mahmoud Al-Hashimi, in a lavish 10-day ceremony in Brunei.
Princess Fadzilah, 36, is one of the Sultan of Brunei's 12 children. He has seven daughters and five sons; one son, Prince Azim, died in 2020 aged 38.
Little is known about Al-Hashimi, who has been described in Brunei media as a "handsome foreigner". His father is academic Nabil Al-Hashem who has been a professor at the University of Brunei for 19 years, according to the BBC.
The princess lives mostly out of the public eye, but she is captain of the Brunei netball team and graduated from Kingston University London, England with a degree in international studies in 2008. She later earned a master’s degree in business administration from the Hult International Business School.
The 10-day celebration began on January 16, when the Sultan of Brunei gave the couple his blessings. On January 20, a religious ceremony was held at the Omar Ali Saifuddien Mosque in Bandar Seri Begawan, the capital of Brunei.
A ceremony was held at Brunei’s royal palace last Sunday, with celebrations running until Tuesday.
Princess Fadzilah is the daughter of the Sultan of Brunei and his second wife, Hajah Mariam, who he divorced in 2003.
Her brother, Prince Mateen, 30, is a polo player and serves in the Royal Brunei Air Force. He has an Instagram following of 2.3 million and shared photos from various celebrations, including the berbedak ceremony, when the bride and groom are blessed by family members, and the palace festivities.
"Congratulations to the newlyweds," Prince Mateen wrote. "I’m so happy for the both of you. Big love to my beautiful sister."
In the images shared by Prince Mateen on January 24, Princess Fadzilah and Al-Hashimi are wearing matching embellished white brocade garments. It has been reported that Princess Fadzilah wore a diamond tiara and a diamond and pearl necklace borrowed from her stepmother, the Queen of Brunei. The pieces were also worn by Princess Majeedah for her wedding in 2007.
