The ruler of U.S. ally Kuwait, Sheikh Jaber al-Ahmad al-Sabah, who rebuilt his Gulf Arab state after U.S.-led forces drove Saddam Hussein's occupation troops from the country in 1991, died on Sunday at the age of 78.
Sheikh Jaber, who had ruled since 1977, died after a long illness and the country's ailing crown prince is set to take over as ruler of this major Gulf oil producer.
Analysts said they expect the new emir to maintain Kuwait's oil policies and pro-Western outlook.
Sheikh Jaber suffered a brain haemorrhage in 2001, which limited his duties in the country which controls about 10 percent of known global oil reserves.
Crown Prince Sheikh Saad al-Abdulla al-Sabah, 76, is likely to be a figurehead while Prime Minister Sheikh Sabah al-Ahmad al-Sabah runs the country -- a role he has played over the past four years.
Sheikh Jaber fled to Saudi Arabia in 1990 when Saddam's troops invaded but returned after the occupation ended to lead the rebuilding of a land scarred by killing, torture and brutal Iraqi rule. He also oversaw the rehabilitation of oilfields set on fire by retreating Iraqi troops.
U.S.-led forces used Kuwait as its main staging ground for the 2003 invasion of Iraq that toppled Saddam. Kuwait hosts up to 30,000 U.S. troops and is home to some 13,000 U.S. citizens.
State television said the emir had "passed away at dawn on Sunday". Hundreds of Kuwaitis and expatriates, some sobbing and reading the Koran, gathered outside the emir's Dasman palace in Kuwait City.
"Our kindhearted father is gone, he never held back on giving us everything we needed," said Raggiyah al-Qallaf, 40, as she cried, clutching a copy of the Koran.
"This is the only emir I have known since my birth, he has been helpful to orphans like me; he was the one who looked after us and today he is dead; that's why I am crying," law student Fahd al-Ajmi, 23, told Reuters.
The ill health of Sheikh Jaber and Sheikh Saad caused concern at home and abroad over the future leadership of one of OPEC's biggest producers.
Source Reuters
Sheikh Jaber, who had ruled since 1977, died after a long illness and the country's ailing crown prince is set to take over as ruler of this major Gulf oil producer.
Analysts said they expect the new emir to maintain Kuwait's oil policies and pro-Western outlook.
Sheikh Jaber suffered a brain haemorrhage in 2001, which limited his duties in the country which controls about 10 percent of known global oil reserves.
Crown Prince Sheikh Saad al-Abdulla al-Sabah, 76, is likely to be a figurehead while Prime Minister Sheikh Sabah al-Ahmad al-Sabah runs the country -- a role he has played over the past four years.
Sheikh Jaber fled to Saudi Arabia in 1990 when Saddam's troops invaded but returned after the occupation ended to lead the rebuilding of a land scarred by killing, torture and brutal Iraqi rule. He also oversaw the rehabilitation of oilfields set on fire by retreating Iraqi troops.
U.S.-led forces used Kuwait as its main staging ground for the 2003 invasion of Iraq that toppled Saddam. Kuwait hosts up to 30,000 U.S. troops and is home to some 13,000 U.S. citizens.
State television said the emir had "passed away at dawn on Sunday". Hundreds of Kuwaitis and expatriates, some sobbing and reading the Koran, gathered outside the emir's Dasman palace in Kuwait City.
"Our kindhearted father is gone, he never held back on giving us everything we needed," said Raggiyah al-Qallaf, 40, as she cried, clutching a copy of the Koran.
"This is the only emir I have known since my birth, he has been helpful to orphans like me; he was the one who looked after us and today he is dead; that's why I am crying," law student Fahd al-Ajmi, 23, told Reuters.
The ill health of Sheikh Jaber and Sheikh Saad caused concern at home and abroad over the future leadership of one of OPEC's biggest producers.
Source Reuters
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