UAE president dies at 73

The Emir of Abu Dhabi and President of the United Arab Emirates, Khalifa bin Zayed al Nahyan, died this Friday (13) to the 73 years, according to the state news agency WAM.

“The Ministry of Presidential Affairs offers its condolences to the people of the UAE and Muslim Arab nations, by the nation’s leader, His Highness Khalifa bin Zayed al Nahyan, President of the State , who left with God this Friday, 13 of May”, points out the statement.

The note, which did not give details about the death of the head of state, announced official mourning for 40 days and that the flags of the Emirates will be at half-mast during the period, as is tradition in some Arab countries.

Khalifa bin Zayed al Nahyan was born in 1948 and assumed the presidency of the country in , after the death of his father, Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, responsible for unifying the seven emirates that make up the United Arab Emirates.