Sultan Qaboos bin Said of Oman has died, according to state television early on Saturday.

Sultan Qaboos, 79, ruled Oman since overthrowing his father in a bloodless coup in 1970. Since assuming power, Qaboos transformed Oman from an isolated backwater, with little or no infrastructure, into a modern state.

But his prolonged absence for treatment has stirred questions over succession.

He had recently returned to the capital, Muscat, after medical treatment in Germany.

In October 2011, Qaboos, who has no children or brothers, amended the process of choosing his successor. But he had not publicly appointed a successor to rule the nation's 4.5 million people.

The sultan, whose closest relatives are cousins, appointed five top officials to a council that would be involved in confirming the new sultan in case of any royal family dispute.

A three-day period of mourning has been declared in Oman and the country's flag will be flown at half-mast for 40 days.

Oman has named Haitham bin Tariq Al Said as the country's new ruler following the death of his cousin Sultan Qaboos bin Said Al Said, according to Al Jazeera’s correspondent in Muscat.

The former culture minister has been sworn in before the ruling family council on Saturday, local media outlets al-Watan and al-Roya reported.

There was no official confirmation of the reports.

The Omani constitution stipulates that a successor must be named by the royal family within three days of the throne falling vacant. The sultan must be a member of the royal family as we;; as "Muslim, mature, rational and the legitimate son of Omani Muslim parents"

The late Sultan Qaboos, one of the Middle East's longest serving rulers who maintained the country’s neutrality in the region, had been ill for some time and was believed to have been suffering from colon cancer.

Al Jazeera's Diplomatic Editor James Bays, reporting from the United Nations, said the death leaves a political vacuum not just in his country but also in the region.

"He is a very big loss in the region. Oman played an outsized role in the region, particularly in the Gulf and the wider Middle East," Bays said, pointing out that Qaboos played a crucial role in secret negotiations leading to the 2015 Iran nuclear deal.

"I think people are worried particularly at this time of turbulence, at a time when relations between the US and Iran are so bad, when in recent days the two countries have seen come so close to war."

Bays also noted that the death of Qaboos comes at a time when the Gulf Cooperation Council has become deeply divided following the Saudi Arabia-led blockade against Qatar

modsfucker:
One of the quiet countries in the middle east

mansakhalifa:
Heard it very early this morning too.

Not a big fan of the monarchical system of dispensation but I must say here and now that I am a huge fan of this man- Sultan Qaboos, for the way he kept his country largely silent whilst its neighbours were busy losing their heads over regional control and sundry balderdash!

Besides, I am quite fascinated by the Al Said dynasty as a whole.
Those guys have about the longest and most noteworthy history of all the ruling houses in the Middle East and they have never really been short of powerful and smart leaders who know how to deploy war and diplomacy to their advantage. Sultan Qaboos epitomized all of this.

I hope his successor- which should be one of his nephews, I believe- continues in the way he has steered that country.

Oman's neutrality is a calming effect and a plus to the turbulent Middle East and it must be kept that way at all cost. They can't all go crazy at once.

itsme01:
RIP to him,

Muscat Airport looks like Ibadan or Ilorin Airport.. nothing fancy, but the city is bad ass

Ykc2:
America killed an Iranian general 43 people died while mourning him ,Iran shot down air plane belonging to Ukraine passengers inside the plane are 80 Iranians 63 Canadian Iranians ,Iran fired missile inside American base single soul was not lost ,Iran should go back to their religion which is zorostan and leave the cult called shiasim, may the souls on the innocent passengers in that plane rest in peace,

Atlanticfire:


They opened a new airport 2 years ago and it is very beautiful.

It can cater for 20 million visitors per year.

There is no airport in Nigeria that you can use to compare the new Muscat airport