Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa bin Hamad bin Abdullah bin Jassim bin Mohammed Al Thani (; born 1 January 1952) is a member of the ruling Al Thani Qatari royal family. He was the ruling Emir of Qatar from 1995 to 2013. The Qatari government now refers to him as His Highness the Father Emir. Hamad seized power in a bloodless palace "coup d'état" in 1995. During his 18-year rule, Qatar's natural gas production reached 77 million tonnes, making Qatar the richest country in the world per capita with the average income in the country US$86,440
House of Al Thani They settled in Doha in the 19th century under their leader Mohammed bin Thani. The group was named after the father of Mohammad, Thani bin Mohammad. The family is made of four main factions: Bani Qassim, Bani Ahmed, Bani Jaber, and Bani Thamer. As of the early 1990s, the number of the family members was estimated to be about 6,000. The leadership transitions in 1913, 1949, 1960, and 1995 were all forced abdications. These abdications were forced by a nephew in one incident and sons in the others. However, none of the forced abdications toppled the Al Thani dynasty, which