Saudi King Fahd
Posted: Monday, August 1st, 2005 6:39 amSaudi Arabia’s King Fahd died today after years of ill health and a turbulent reign that saw the oil-rich kingdom face up to Islamic extremism.
His half-brother, Crown Prince Abdullah, who has been de facto ruler for a decade, was anointed his successor.
Medical sources said King Fahd, aged in his 80s, died in hospital at dawn.
The king had been admitted to King Faisal Specialist Hospital in Riyadh in late May for “medical tests”.
At that time he was said to be suffering from respiratory problems, including pneumonia.
Believed to have been born in 1923, Fahd took the throne in 1982 of a vast kingdom which is the world’s largest petroleum exporter and holds a quarter of global oil reserves. … Read full obituary
