The emir of the small but economically strong Gulf state of Qatar, a major diplomatic broker that has played a key role in the Arab spring, is set to transfer power to his son in a first for the Arab world. "The royal palace announces that Qatar's emir, Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa al-Thani, will address the Qatari people at 8:00 am (0500 GMT) on Tuesday," said a statement carried by the official QNA news agency.
An official said the emir will "announce the transfer of his powers to his son", Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani. The palace statement declared Tuesday an official holiday in the gas-rich nation which has punched above its weight in recent years. Qatar-based satellite television channel Al-Jazeera said the emir met "with the royal family and prominent members of Qatari society. He has informed the meeting of his decision to hand power over to his crown prince."
Sheikh Hamad, who used Qatar's immense gas wealth to drive its modernisation and transform it into a major player in world diplomacy, came to power in a coup in which he overthrew his father Sheikh Khalifa in June 1995. A diplomat said that by freely stepping down the 61-year-old emir would "score a first in the Arab world," where autocratic rulers held power uncontested for decades until the Arab Spring revolutions that toppled regimes in Tunisia, Egypt and Libya.
Crown Prince Sheikh Tamim, born in 1980, is the second son of the emir and his second wife Sheikha Mozah and has been groomed for years to take the helm of the super-rich key Western ally. The British-educated Tamim is deputy commander of the armed forces and head of the National Olympic Committee. He also chairs the Qatar 2022 Supreme Committee which is in charge of hosting the 2022 FIFA World Cup.
Diplomats said that over the past three years the emir has increasingly transferred military and security responsibilities to Tamim, who like his father was educated at the British military academy Sandhurst. "The emir is convinced that he should encourage the new generation. He plans to transfer power to the crown prince, Sheikh Tamim, and to carry out a ministerial reshuffle to bring a large number of young people into the cabinet," a Qatari official told AFP on condition of anonymity. "The emir could take a step back, that is to say not retire completely but play a more honorary role, so that his son can better assume the responsibilities and become the man in charge," a French diplomat said.
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