A Mideast Ruler Is Dead at 91

Kuwait's Sheikh Sabah Al Ahmad Al Sabah may be succeeded by half-brother
By Newser Editors and Wire Services
Posted Sep 29, 2020 11:37 AM CDT
A Mideast Ruler Is Dead at 91
In this March 20, 2019 file photo, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, left, shakes hands with Kuwait's Emir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al- Jaber Al-Sabah, in Kuwait City, Kuwait.   (Jim Young/Pool Photo via AP)

Sheikh Sabah Al Ahmad Al Sabah, the ruler of Kuwait who drew on his decades as the oil-rich nation's top diplomat to push for closer ties to Iraq after the 1990 Gulf War and solutions to other regional crises, died Tuesday at the age of 91, per the AP. In a Middle East replete with elderly rulers, Sheikh Sabah stood out for his efforts at pushing for diplomacy to resolve a bitter dispute between Qatar and other Arab nations that continues to this day. His 2006 ascension in Kuwait, a staunch US ally since the American-led war that expelled occupying Iraqi troops, came after parliament ousted his predecessor just nine days into his rule. Yet as Kuwait's ruling emir, he struggled with internal political disputes, the fallout of the 2011 Arab Spring protests and seesawing crude oil prices that chewed into a national budget providing cradle-to-grave subsidies.

State television announced his death after playing Quranic prayers, with Royal Court Minister Sheikh Ali Jarrah Al Sabah reading a brief statement, his hands shaking. "With great sadness and sorrow, the Kuwaiti people, the Arab and Islamic nations, and the friendly peoples of the world mourn the death of the late His Highness Sheikh Sabah Al Ahmad Al Jaber Al Sabah, emir of the state of Kuwait who moved to the realm of the Lord," the sheikh said. He did offer a cause of death. Sheikh Sabah fell ill in July, leading to a quick hospitalization and surgery in Kuwait City. A US Air Force C-17 flying hospital then transported him to Rochester, Minn., home of the Mayo Clinic—an extraordinary gesture by the American government for a foreign head of state. He is expected to be succeeded by his half brother, the crown prince Sheikh Nawaf Al Ahmad Al Sabah.

(More Kuwait stories.)

Get the news faster.
Tap to install our app.
X
Install the Newser News app
in two easy steps:
1. Tap in your navigation bar.
2. Tap to Add to Home Screen.

X