DUBAI, May 15 (Xinhua) -- Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan was elected as the third president of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) on Saturday, succeeding the late president, Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, who passed away on Friday at the age of 73.

Sheikh Mohamed, 61, previously held the position Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi for 18 years. He also served as Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces.

Sheikh Mohamed is the third son of UAE Founding Father Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, who passed away on Nov. 2, 2004. Sheikh Mohammad is married and is the father of nine children.

He had some of his early education abroad, and graduated from the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst in 1979.

He had held various positions in the UAE military, including officer in the Amiri Guard and pilot in the UAE Air Force. In January 1993, he was appointed as chief of staff of the UAE Armed Forces and held the rank of Lieutenant General from January 1994 to January 2005, when he was promoted to the rank of General.

In December 2004, he became the head of Abu Dhabi Executive Council or the government of Emirate of Abu Dhabi. Enditem

Related

Go to Forum >>0 Comment(s)