May 14, (THEWILL) – The Federal Supreme Council has elected Abu Dhabi Crown Prince, Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, as new president of the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
The move, according to State news agency, WAN, follows the death of President Sheikh Khalifa Bin Zayed Al Nahyan.
UAE Ministry of Presidential Affairs announced the death of Khalifa on Friday, but gave no details.
“The UAE has lost its righteous son and leader of the ’empowerment phase’ and guardian of its blessed journey”, his half-brother and new President, Mohammed bin Zayed, said on Twitter.
The UAE announced a 40-day mourning period with flags flown at half-mast and suspended work at all public and private sector entities for three days.
Khalifa, born in 1948, succeeded his father, the UAE’s founder, Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, in 2004.
In 2014, he underwent surgery following his stroke, and has largely been out of public sight since.
Instead, his half-brother, Mohammed bin Zayed, was seen as the de facto ruler and the decision maker of major foreign policy decisions, such as joining a Saudi-led war in Yemen and spearheading an embargo on neighbouring Qatar in recent years.
Born on 11 March, 1961, the new President, Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, colloquially known by his initials as MBZ, is the third son of Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, the first President of the United Arab Emirates and ruler of Abu Dhabi, and his third wife, Sheikha Fatima bint Mubarak Al Ketbi.
Mohammed’s brothers are: Hamdan, Hazza, Saeed, Isa, Nahyan, Saif, Tahnoun, Mansour, Falah, Diab, Omar and Khalid (as well as four deceased brothers; Khalifa bin Zayed, Sultan, Nasser and Ahmed). In addition to these, he has a few sisters. He has five younger full-brothers: Hamdan, Hazza, Tahnoun, Mansour and Abdullah. They are referred to as Bani Fatima or sons of Fatima.
Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan was educated at schools in Al Ain and Abu Dhabi, until the age of 18. In 1979, he joined the prestigious Royal Military Academy Sandhurst, where he trained in armour, helicopter flying, tactical flying and paratroops. After graduating in April, 1979, he returned home to the UAE to join the Officers’ Training Course in Sharjah, another Emirate of the UAE.
He has held a number of roles in the UAE military, from that of Officer in the Amiri Guard (the UAE’s elite security force) and Pilot in the UAE Air Force, to his current role as Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces.
Guided by the directives of the late Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan and President HH Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces, HH Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed, helped develop the UAE Armed Forces in terms of strategic planning, training, organizational structure and promoting defense capabilities. Sheikh Mohamed’s direct guidance and leadership, led the UAE Armed Forces to become a leading institution that is widely admired by many international military organisations.
Sheikh Mohammed also holds a number of political and economic roles at an Emirate level and a wider Federal level in the UAE.
Among his many interests, he is known for his unwavering commitment to enhance educational standards in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi and raise them to be on par with the best international standards. Since Sheikh Mohamed took on the Chairmanship of the Abu Dhabi Education Council he has worked tirelessly to forge partnerships with prestigious world-class educational institutions and think-tanks, a number of which have subsequently announced plans to either establish a base in or join strategic joint ventures with existing academic establishments, under the direction of His Highness Sheikh Khalifa Bin Zayed, the President of UAE and the Ruler of the Emirate of Abu Dhabi.​
He is seen as the driving force behind the UAE’s interventionist foreign policy and is a leader of a campaign against Islamist movements in the Arab world.
In November 2003, his father Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan appointed him as Deputy Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi.
Upon the death of his father, Sheikh Mohammed became Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi in November 2004 and was appointed Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces in January 2005.
Later that month, he was promoted to the rank of General. Since December 2004 he has also been the Chairman of the Abu Dhabi Executive Council, which is responsible for the development and planning of the Emirate of Abu Dhabi and is a member of the Supreme Petroleum Council.
He also serves as a special adviser to the President of the UAE, Khalifa bin Zayed Al-Nahyan, his older brother.
As a result of the ill health of his brother, Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed, who was the President of the UAE, Al Nahyan became the de facto ruler of Abu Dhabi and was responsible for welcoming foreign dignitaries in the capital district of the United Arab Emirates in the city of Abu Dhabi.
In January 2014, when his half-brother Khalifa, the president of the UAE and Sheikh of Abu Dhabi, suffered a stroke, Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan became the de facto ruler of Abu Dhabi, controlling almost every aspect of UAE policymaking.
Mohammed bin Zayed was entrusted with most day-to-day decision making of the emirate of Abu Dhabi as the crown prince of Abu Dhabi.
Academics have characterised Mohammed bin Zayed as the strongman leader of an authoritarian regime.
In 2019, the New York Times named him as the most powerful Arab ruler and one of the most powerful men on Earth.
He was also named as one of the 100 Most Influential People of 2019 by TIME magazine.
In April 2021, the Jakarta-Cikampek Elevated Toll Road in Indonesia was renamed as Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Skyway (Jalan Layang Mohamed bin Zayed), at the behest of the Indonesian President’s secretary.
