Oman mourns the passing of Sultan Qaboos bin Said Al Said

Gulf News

Oman’s #Sultan_Qaboos has passed away. Sultan Qaboos Bin Said of Oman, the Arab world's longest-serving ruler, was laid to rest on Saturday morning. He passed away late on Friday night. Oman declared three days of official mourning with flags to be flown at half-mast for 40 days. Full Story Here: https://gn24.ae/93bfc88a94ab000 See more at https://gulfnews.com/videos

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00:00Sultan Qaboos bin Said, the ruler of the Sultanate of Oman, has died today at the age of 79.

00:06Born in Salalah, Qaboos received his primary and secondary education in Oman before moving

00:12to Britain at the age of 16.

00:14There he attended the British Royal Military Academy in Sandhurst.

00:18After the return to his homeland in 1966, Qaboos did not hide his wish for a change

00:24in Oman, much to his ruling father's reluctance.

00:27The Sultan won over Oman in 1970 after a bloodless coup against his father.

00:33When he became ruler, Oman only had three schools, two hospitals, and six kilometers

00:38of paved roads.

00:39Once in power, Qaboos embarked on modernizing the country.

00:43He launched a series of ambitious schemes promoting education, healthcare, and road

00:48and transport, helping alter the life in the Sultanate.

00:52After him, schools spread across Oman, providing education to boys and girls alike.

00:58The country's first university, which was named after Qaboos, was established in 1986.

01:03He was a fan of classical music and even launched the Royal Oman Opera in October 2011 in Muscat.

01:10It was the first opera house in the Gulf.

01:12His long-time governance was never challenged.

01:15For many Omanis, Qaboos was the father of modern Oman.

01:19His birthday was on November 18, 1940, which is celebrated as the annual national holiday.

01:25With no clear successor to Qaboos, the ruling family council will have to select a new ruler

01:29within three days after the position becomes vacant, according to the Oman constitution.

01:35Should the council fail to reach a consensus, a letter left behind by Qaboos will determine

01:40the next ruler of Oman.

01:42This is Yusra Zaki reporting for Gulf News.

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