How old is sultan qaboos of oman

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Follow NBC News. Under his reign, Oman became known as a welcoming tourist destination and a key Mideast interlocutor, helping the U. The sultan's death had raised the risk of unrest in the country. Sultan Qaboos was unmarried, had no children and did not publicly name an heir. Over time, Sultan Qaboos introduced what amounted to a written constitution, created a parliament and granted citizens limited political freedoms.

But the sultan always had final say. That strong grip extended to any sign of dissent. The Royal Oman Police often patrol in riot-ready vehicles with chicken wire covering the windows, something only seen in the island nation of Bahrain which has faced years of low-level unrest.

Small protests broke out as part of the wider Arab Spring unrest in , revealing discontent over corruption, unemployment and rising prices within the sultanate. Oman was one of the few countries in the Arab world to maintain ties with Egypt after Egyptian President Anwar Sadat signed a peace treaty with Israel in , and acted as a mediator between Iran and Iraq during their ruinous eight-year war. It has also long served as a quiet base for U.

Embassy takeover in Tehran. As he grew older, Sultan Qaboos also grew increasingly reclusive. He is known to have had three major passions — reading, music and yachting. Since then, the authorities have continued to block local independent newspapers and magazines critical of the government, confiscate books, and harass activists, according to Human Rights Watch.

Reacting to the death on Twitter, Iran's Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said it was a "loss for the region", and voiced hope that the new leadership would take "inspiration from the past".

Oman sultan frees blogger activists. Oman protests despite reform vow. This video can not be played To play this video you need to enable JavaScript in your browser. Sultan Qaboos dominated Oman's political life for almost 50 years. Smooth transition, for now at least. Neutral policy, absolute rule. Image source, Keystone. Qaboos deposed his father in a bloodless coup in Image source, Reuters.