A distinguished diplomat, who served the country for nearly half a century, passed away yesterday after a heart attack.
Former Foreign Ministry International Affairs under-secretary Karim Ebrahim Al Shakar died aged 77 during a visit to Delhi, India.
“He was a great man and a wonderful father,” his daughter Areije Al Shakar, who manages Al Waha Venture Capital Fund of Funds, told the GDN.
“He will be missed by all. There will be a funeral and memorial service once his body is repatriated to Bahrain.”
Mr Al Shakar, a respected statesman who enjoyed reading and travelling, began his diplomatic career in 1970 as an attaché at the Foreign Affairs Ministry shortly after completing his Bachelor’s degree in Political Science from Delhi University.
He quickly rose through the ranks and between 1972 and 1976, was a member of Bahrain’s Permanent Mission to the United Nations (UN).
In 1979, he married Fatima Al Mansouri with whom he went on to have three daughters – Areije, Elham and Hessa.
From 1979 to 1982, he was a member of the Bahrain-Singapore joint committee. Between 1982 and 1987, the late diplomat had served as Ambassador and Permanent Representative of Bahrain to the UN office in Geneva, Consul General to the Swiss Union and non-resident Ambassador to Germany and Austria.
Between 1984 and 1987, he was also the kingdom’s Permanent Representative to the UN and UNIDO in Vienna.
In 1986, Mr Al Shakar was the chairman of the G-77’s Geneva chapter.
In 1988, he chaired several plenary sessions of the UN General Assembly as vice-president of the UN body during its 45th session. From 1987 to 1990, he was the kingdom’s ambassador and Permanent Representative to UN office in New York.
Between 1990 and 1995, he was Bahrain’s ambassador to the UK, while also representing the country in Ireland, the Netherlands and Denmark in a non-residential capacity.
After this five-year stint, he was appointed as director of the International Directorate within the Foreign Affairs Ministry until 2001.
In 2001, the diplomat was bestowed with the Shaikh Isa bin Salman Al Khalifa medal for merit.
From September 2001 until June 2007, Mr Al Shakar was the kingdom’s Ambassador to China, while also serving in a non-resident capacity as ambassador to Malaysia, Thailand, Philippines, Singapore and Mongolia.
From 2009 until his retirement in 2015, he served as the International Affairs under-secretary, according to the Foreign Affairs Ministry.
“Karim had numerous connections and relations with many countries, including India, where he attended university in his youth,” former Gulf Air captain and a friend of the family Ameen Budagher, told the GDN.
“Karim was a remarkable statesman with a successful career representing Bahrain across continents.
“It was our honour and privilege to have known him over the decades; an irreplaceable inspiration to many and will be dearly missed by many.”
In addition to his wife and three daughters, Mr Al Shakar also leaves behind four grandchildren – Fatima, Maryam, Layla and Sultan.
naman@gdnmedia.bh
&uuid=(email))