The United Arab Emirates, its president, Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, who died Friday at the age of 73, was buried, according to what the Emirates News Agency announced, and forty days of mourning was declared.
On Friday evening, the Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi, Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed, and a group of sheikhs performed the funeral prayer for Sheikh Khalifa, according to the Emirates News Agency.
According to the agency, “His Highness … the body of the deceased was buried to his final resting place and buried in Al Bateen Cemetery in Abu Dhabi.”
The UAE had mourned Friday “to the people of the UAE, the Arab and Islamic nations, and the whole world, the leader of the nation and the patron of his march, His Highness Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, President of the State, who moved next to his Lord … today, Friday, May 13.”
And the UAE announced forty days of mourning, starting from Friday, and flags at half-mast, in addition to disrupting work “in ministries, departments, federal and local institutions, and the private sector for 3 days.”
The disease forced Sheikh Khalifa to move away from the circle of government and to appear on rare occasions only since 2014, leaving the leadership to his half-brother, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi, Sheikh Mohammed.
The Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi, Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, mourned his brother, saying in a tweet on Twitter: “The UAE lost its righteous son, the leader of the empowerment stage and the trustee of its blessed journey… his positions, achievements, wisdom, giving and initiatives in every corner of the country.”
Sheikh Khalifa, born in January 1948, succeeded his father, Sheikh Zayed, the founder of the Emirates, in 2004, in the two positions of ruler of Abu Dhabi and president of the wealthy Gulf state.
Abu Dhabi is the richest among the seven emirates that make up the United Arab Emirates, as it contains about 90 percent of the UAE’s oil reserves.
Source: AFP