Kuwait's Emir Sheikh Nawaf al-Ahmad Al Sabah has died at 86, state television reported Saturday.
Kuwait state television broke into programming with Quranic verses just before a somber official made the announcement.
“With great sadness and sorrow, we — the Kuwaiti people, the Arab and Islamic nations, and the friendly peoples of the world — mourn the late His Highness the emir, Sheikh Nawaf Al Ahmad Al Jaber Al Sabah, who passed away to his Lord today,” Sheikh Mohammed Abdullah Al Sabah, the minister of his emiri court, read the brief statement.
Authorities gave no cause of death.
Kuwait's deputy ruler and his half-brother, Sheikh Meshal al-Ahmad Al Jaber, 83, was named his successor.
In late November, Sheikh Nawaf was rushed to hospital for an unspecified illness. State-run news previously reported that he traveled to the United States for unspecified medical checks in March 2021.
Sheikh Nawaf was sworn in as emir following the 2020 death of his predecessor, the late Sheikh Sabah Al Ahmad Al Sabah. The breadth and depth of emotion over the loss of Sheikh Sabah, known for his diplomacy and peacemaking, was felt across the region.
Sheikh Nawaf previously served as Kuwait’s interior and defense minister.
Kuwait, a nation home to some 4.2 million people, has the world’s sixth-largest known oil reserves.
