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Abu Dhabi / WAM
The UAE’s Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan Foundation paid the expenses of a mass wedding for 435 couples held on Friday in Manama, Bahrain, in cooperation with the Riffa Charity Society. An official source at the foundation said it was the largest mass wedding in the Middle East.
The source added that the foundation was acting on directives from President HH Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan and HH Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces. The foundation has been sponsoring mass wedding in Bahrain for the fifth year in a row to support the youth and make it easier for them to marry, it said.
Supporting the youth in other member states Gulf Cooperation Council is the fruit of continuous cooperation between the two fraternal countries and aims to promote the values of solidarity, compassion and cooperation and the interests of society in the region, the source added.
Honorary President of Riffa Charity Society, Khalifa bin Ahmed Al Dhahrani, said Friday’s event was the 30th mass wedding to be organised by the society.
He praised the Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan Foundation for its generous initiative which he said was part of the historical UAE-Bahrain ties sponsored by His Highness Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed and Bahrain’s King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa.
To date, the Khalifa Foundation has sponsored the wedding of 1758 people in five mass events in Bahrain. The first of these mass weddings was held in December 2011.