Ibrahim ibni Iskandar (born Tunku Ibrahim Ismail ibni Tunku Mahmood Iskandar, 22 November 1958) is King of Malaysia and Sultan of Johor.
Ibrahim was born during the reign of his great-grandfather, Sultan Sir Ibrahim, and became heir apparent when his father, Sultan Iskandar, acceded to the throne of Johor in 1981. He was named Crown Prince of Johor on 3 July 1981. He was educated at Trinity Grammar School, in Sydney, Australia. In 1982, he married Raja Zarith Sofiah. They had six children, including Ismail Idris and Aminah Maimunah Iskandariah.
Ibrahim became Sultan of Johor upon his father's death in 2010. On 31 January 2024, Ibrahim was sworn in as the King of Malaysia, having been elected to a five-year term on 27 October 2023. Significant events in his reign have included his installation in July 2024.
Tunku Ibrahim was born on 22 November 1958 at the Sultanah Aminah Hospital, Johor Bahru, during the reign of his great-grandfather, Sultan Ibrahim of Johor. He was the third child and eldest son of Sultan Iskandar by his first wife, Josephine Ruby Trevorrow, an English woman from Torquay. Trevorrow temporarily took on the name Khalsom binti Abdullah following her marriage to Iskandar. Ibrahim's mother later remarried and returned to England. Ibrahim's great-grandfather died in London on 8 May 1959. Thus, Ibrahim's grandfather, Ismail, became Sultan of Johor.
Ibrahim completed his secondary education at Trinity Grammar School in Sydney, Australia from 1968 until 1970. After finishing high school, he was sent to the Army Training Centre (PULADA) in Kota Tinggi for basic military training. He also received military training in the United States, at Fort Benning, Georgia, and later at Fort Bragg, North Carolina.
Crown Prince of Johor (1981–2010)
Ibrahim was appointed as the Crown Prince of Johor on 3 July 1981, and has primarily resided at the Istana Pasir Pelangi since then. He served as the regent of Johor between 26 April 1984 and 25 April 1989 when his father served his term as the Yang di-Pertuan Agong. In recent years, Ibrahim gradually took over some state duties and functions from his aging father. These included attending the 211th Conference of Rulers, where Ibrahim and Abdullah, the Crown Prince of Pahang, represented their fathers in the meetings, among other state functions.
Shortly before Filipino opposition politician Ninoy Aquino was assassinated at Manila International Airport on 21 August 1983, Ibrahim met Aquino upon his arrival in Singapore and later brought him to meet other Malaysian leaders across the Johor–Singapore Causeway. Once in Johor, Aquino also met with Ibrahim's father, Iskandar, who was a close friend.
Sultan of Johor (2010–present)
A few hours before his father's death on 22 January 2010, Tunku Ibrahim was appointed as the Regent of Johor, following medical reports that suggested Sultan Iskandar's impending death. Sultan Iskandar died on the same night, and Tunku Ibrahim was installed as the Sultan of Johor the following morning. The Menteri Besar (Chief Minister) of Johor, Abdul Ghani Othman cited that Sultan Ibrahim and immediate members of the royal family would undertake a mourning period of 40 days. During the mourning season, Sultan Ibrahim made his inaugural presence at the Conference of Rulers in February 2010 as the Sultan of Johor.
On 30 June 2011, Sultan Ibrahim drove the last train from Tanjong Pagar railway station, having received tuition from Chief Locomotive Inspector Hasnol Azahari Aman of Keretapi Tanah Melayu to enable him to do this. He stated that he wished to do this as his grandfather, Sultan Ismail, had opened the causeway between Singapore and Malaya in 1923, and that it was appropriate for him to drive the last train out of the station.
Sultan Ibrahim also declared Muar as Johor's new royal capital, replacing Johor Bahru, on 5 February 2012. This coincided with the Mawlid celebrations.
Sultan Ibrahim became the first ruler of Johor to celebrate his birthday celebration in Muar on 22 November 2012. He picked the town because it was "rich in history and tradition besides being peaceful, beautiful and progressive". He wanted the state government to gazette all the old buildings in the town as a state heritage. He also wants the local authorities to preserve the cleanliness of the Muar River which could be done by relocating the bus and taxi terminals elsewhere.
Johor, as with the former Unfederated Malay States of Perlis, Kedah, Kelantan and Terengganu, used to rest on Fridays and Saturdays, in contrast with the former Federated Malay States as well as Malacca, Penang, Sabah and Sarawak and the Federal Territory which observe their weekends on Saturdays and Sundays. Johor, together with Perlis, moved their weekend to Saturday and Sunday on 1 January 1994 to synchronise with neighboring Singapore as well as with Kuala Lumpur, as Johor by then was a quickly industrialising state.
However, on 22 November 2013, on Sultan Ibrahim's birthday celebrations, he decreed that Johor would move its weekend back to Friday and Saturday, to enable Muslims in the state to attend their Friday prayers, effective 1 January 2014. This move was not without controversy due to the disruptions it caused, particularly for private businesses dealing with Singapore. The private sector nevertheless continues to rest on Saturdays and Sundays.
Sultan Ibrahim was crowned as the Sultan of Johor on 23 March 2015. The last coronation was that of his grandfather Sultan Ismail on 10 February 1960. From 2015 onwards, 23 March was made an annual state public holiday as the Sultan's official birthday, replacing the public holiday on 22 November, the Sultan's actual birthday.
In August 2015, Sultan Ibrahim decreed that the name of Kulaijaya district be reverted to its former name of Kulai. He also decreed Nusajaya to be renamed to Iskandar Puteri, as well as renaming Ledang District to Tangkak District.
Sultan Ibrahim issued a decree banning vaping in Johor effective 1 January 2016. The purposes of the ban was for the sake of the health of the residents of Johor. Kelantan and Terengganu followed soon after.