Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed al-Nahyan is no more. The death of the president of the United Arab Emirates, 74, was announced this Friday by the local authorities, who decreed “an official mourning and the flags at half mast” for a period of forty days. Honors to celebrate the memory of a leader who has accompanied his country’s meteoric rise on the international scene over the past two decades, an oil monarchy with growing influence.
After the establishment of the United Arab Emirates in 1971, Sheikh Khalifa was appointed Deputy Prime Minister of the new state. He then chaired the Superior Petroleum Council, a body endowed with broad powers in the energy field. In 2004, he succeeded his father, Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan al-Nahyan, president and founding father of this Gulf country comprising seven emirates, including Dubai and the capital, Abu Dhabi.
Since 2014 and the stroke of Sheikh Khalifa, it was his famous brother, Mohammed bin Zayed, nicknamed “MBZ”, who led the affairs of the country. Already considered the de facto leader of the United Arab Emirates, he should in turn become, at 61, president of the federation and prince of Abu Dhabi. In the meantime, the interim presidency will be provided by the Prince of Dubai, Sheikh Mohamed Rashed Al-Maktoum, before a Supreme Council of the United Arab Emirates officially designates the successor within thirty days.