Sheikh Saad Al-Sabah of Kuwait passes away Kuwait: Sheikh Saad Abdullah Al-Sabah, briefly the Emir of Kuwait, died after a long illness, the royal court announced Tuesday evening in a statement broadcast by State television. The Sheikh was 78. Sheikh Saad was already ailing when he succeeded to the throne in 2006 after the death of his predecessor cousin, Sheikh Jaber al-Ahmad al-Sabah. He stepped down nine days later, after rivals from another branch of the family and opposition within Parliament created a political crisis.
Born in 1930, Sheikh Saad was the eldest son of Sheikh Abdullah al-Salem al-Sabah, the 11th emir of Kuwait. He was KuwaitÂ’s crown prince from 1977 to 2006. He was also prime minister from 1977 to 2003, when he gave up the post because of poor health. Sheik Saad received his basic education in Kuwait, then took courses at Hendon Police College in London until 1954. He held various posts in the Kuwaiti police and public security services until 1959, when he was appointed deputy director of the police and public security department. He remained in that post until 1961. In January 1962, Sheikh Saad was appointed interior minister in the first Kuwaiti cabinet after it became independent from Britain. In 1964, he was also put in charge of national defense. In 1997, he underwent colon surgery, and since then he had traveled repeatedly to Britain and the United States for tests and treatment. He was married to his cousin Sheikha Latifa. His survivors include one son, Fahd, and three daughters. Two other daughters died before him. === Kuwait announced three days of mourning on Tuesday after the death of Sheikh Saad Al-Abdullah Al-Sabah, who was briefly Amir of the Gulf Arab state in 2006, state media said. The mourning is not expected to affect parliamentary elections in the oil-exporting country, which are scheduled for Saturday. === GULF-GOANS e-NEWSLETTER (Since 1994) http://www.yahoogroups.com/group/gulf-goans/ www.goa-world.com/
