Saudi Prince Dies After Spending 20 Years in Coma

Saudi Arabian Prince Al-Waleed bin Khalid Al Saud died on Saturday, 20 years after a car crash in London left him in a coma.

His father, Prince Khaled bin Talal Al Saud, announced the death in a message on social media. Al-Waleed was 36 years old.

“With hearts that believe in Allah’s decree and destiny, and with deep sorrow and grief, we mourn our beloved son Prince Al-Waleed bin Khalid bin Talal bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, may Allah have mercy on him, who passed away today and returned to the mercy of Allah,” he wrote in a July 19 post on X. “Truly, we belong to God and to Him we shall return.”

He said there would be three days of mourning.

The Royal Court of Saudi Arabia confirmed the death of the prince in a brief statement. A funeral prayer was held on Sunday at Imam Turki bin Abdullah Mosque in Riyadh, according to the Royal Court.

Al-Waleed was the eldest son of Prince Khaled bin Talal, a prominent member of the Saudi royal family and nephew of billionaire Saudi Prince Al Waleed bin Talal, according to the Dubai media outlet Gulf News.

Al-Waleed was involved in a car crash in London in 2005, when he was 15 and studying as a cadet at a military academy in the city.

After the accident, he was repatriated and transferred to King Abdulaziz Medical City in Riyadh.

The crash caused severe brain injuries and internal bleeding, leaving him in a coma. He remained on mechanical ventilation under continuous medical supervision for 20 years, with treatment overseen by specialized doctors from the United States and Spain.

Although Al-Waleed, who became known as the “sleeping prince,” experienced occasional involuntary movements that gave his family hope, he never regained consciousness. His relatives documented his care on video during his long stay in the hospital in the Saudi capital.

The story of Khaled’s devotion to Al-Waleed spread around the world after he showed photographs year after year of his son lying in bed. In 2019, a video clip appeared to show him moving his head, his first observed response in years.

His father repeatedly rejected advice to remove the life support that was keeping him alive, according to Egyptian media outlet Youm7.

“God is the one who preserved his soul, and I cannot take the life support equipment away from my son. I believe that this life is only in God’s hands,” his father previously said.