Sheikh Saqr bin Mohammed Al Qasimi, the ruler of the Ras al Khaimah emirate, has died, state-run media reported Wednesday. Al Qasimi took control of the northernmost emirate in the late 1940s and was one of the world's longest-reigning monarchs.
He was born in Ras Al Khaimah city in 1920, where he was brought up in an Islamic Arabic environment under the care of his father, Shaikh Mohammad Bin Salim, who ruled the emirate between 1917-1919.
An official mourning has been declared with effect from Wednesday for a week through which the flags of the UAE will be flown at half mast.
Sheikh Saqr appointed his oldest son, Khalid bin Saqr Al Qasimi, as the Crown Prince of Ras Al Khaimah in 1974. Sheikh Khalid was replaced by Sheikh Saud bin Saqr on 28 April 2003, who has been the de facto ruler in recent years.
