PARTING BIO NOTES

C O N F I D E N T I A L RIYADH 07560 DEPARTMENT FOR INR/B E.O. 12356: DECL: OADR TAGS: PINR SA SUBJECT: PARTING BIO NOTES ¶1. (CONFIDENTIAL - ENTIRE TEXT). ¶2. THE FOLLOWING ARE BIO ODDS AND ENDS IMPARTED BY EMBOFFS TO INR/B TDYER DURING HIS JULY 7 TO SEPTEMBER 4 STAY IN THE KINGDOM. THEY ARE PASSED ON TO INTERESTED WASHINGTON ANALYSTS FOR THEIR USE. ¶3. IN AN EARLY JULY 1991 MEETING BETWEEN KING FAHD AND VISITING CODEL STEVE SOLARZ, THE CONGRESSMAN CONGRATULATED THE KING ON HIS RECENT WEIGHT LOSS (PERHAPS NOW AS MUCH AS 100 POUNDS). FAHD RESPONDED IN ENGLISH, "ALL I CAN EAT IS RICE THAT'S BOILED THREE TIMES. DO YOU KNOW WHAT THAT TASTES LIKE? IT'S LIKE SHREDDED CARDBOARD|" ¶4. CROWN PRINCE 'ABDULLAH, A TRUE BEDOUIN AT HEART, WAS WHOLLY DISTRUSTFUL OF MODERN MEDICINE UNTIL HIS HEART ATTACK. SINCE BEING TOLD THAT HE MUST EXERCISE AND WATCH HIS DIET, HOWEVER, HE SWIMS THREE LAPS IN HIS POOL EVERY MORNING AND WALKS BRISKLY FOR 45 MINUTES EVERY EVENING, ALTHOUGH HIS PHYSICAL APPEARANCE DOES NOT APPROACH THE NEWFOUND ROSY GLOW OF THE KING. ¶5. FOREIGN MINISTER SAUD AL-FAYSAL HAS A HUGE AQUARIUM IN HIS HOME. WHEN AN EMBOFF COMPLIMENTED HIS WIFE ON IT, SHE REPLIED THAT THE PRINCE SPENT TOO MUCH TIME LOOKING AT THE FISH "WHEN HE SLEEPS HERE." IN ADDITION TO HIS MANY NIGHTS ON THE ROAD IN SERVICE TO THE KINGDOM, SAUD APPARENTLY HAS AN EGYPTIAN MISTRESS WHOM HE FREQUENTLY FLIES INTO THE KINGDOM ON HIS PRIVATE JET. ¶6. PRINCESS SARA BINT FAYSAL BIN SALMAN BIN MUHAMMAD BIN SAUD AL-KABIR, A 22-YEAR-OLD STUDENT AT KING SAUD UNIVERSITY, IS THE OWNER OF THE ASAF INTERNATIONAL ESTABLISHMENT, AN ORGANIZATION THAT DEALS IN LUXURY SPORTS CARS. PRINCESS SARA ANNOUNCED IN JULY 1991 THAT SHE WILL ALSO ENTER THE REALM OF THE "FUNCTIONAL" USED CAR SO THAT THE AVERAGE SAUDI WILL BE ABLE TO AFFORD ONE. FREEMAN