International Desk: The President of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan has died. He was 73 years old.
His death was announced on Friday by state news agency WAM. He has been the President of the United Arab Emirates and the ruler of Abu Dhabi since 2004.
Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan has rarely been seen in public since his stroke in 2014. At that time, his brother Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan was ruling the country.
Sheikh Khalifa was born in 1948. He was the second president of the United Arab Emirates and the 16th ruler of Abu Dhabi. He became president after the death of his father, Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan.
According to the BBC, the UAE Ministry of Presidential Affairs has issued a condolence message on his death. An announcement has been made by the ministry that mourning will be observed for the next 40 days. At this time, the national flag will be at half-mast from Friday.
Moreover, the government has ordered the cancellation of three-day activities in all public and private sectors.
According to the UAE constitution, the country’s vice-president and prime minister, and the ruler of Dubai, Mohammed bin Rashid al-Maktoum, will now be acting president. Al-Maktoum will run until a new president is elected in the next 30 days by the central council, which is made up of the country’s seven emirates.
And as the ruler of Abu Dhabi, Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan may be succeeded by his honest brother, Crown Prince Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan.
In the first decade of his presidency, Sheikh Khalifa underwent major restructuring in both the UAE central government and the Abu Dhabi government.
Although he had not been seen in public since his stroke, he did give instructions.
