By A Correspondent- United Arab  Emirates President Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan has died aged 73.

The development was announced by the Ministry of Presidential Affairs. He had been battling illness for several years and had long stopped having involvement in day-to-day affairs with his brother, Abu Dhabi’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Zayed, seen as the de facto ruler.

Emirati, state news agency WAM reported on Friday on Twitter:

The Ministry of Presidential Affairs announced that there will be 40 days of official mourning with flags at half mast and three days closure of ministries and official entities at the federal and local levels and the private sector.

Sheikh Khalifa who was born in 1948, was chosen in 2004 to succeed his long-serving father Sheikh Zayed Al Nahyan who ascended the throne in 1971.