Qatari emir to step down, hand power to his son

Ruler's court says Qatari emir to address nation on Tuesday.

DOHA/ DUBAI: Qatar's emir, Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa al-Thani, 61, has informed members of the ruling family of his decision to transfer power to his son, Crown Prince Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani, al Jazeera television said on Monday.

Qatar's royal court said that the emir would address his people on Tuesday morning.

The emir, who used the tiny Gulf Arab state's immense gas wealth to drive its modernisation, came to power in a coup when he overthrew his own father Sheikh Khalifa in June 1995.

A diplomat said that by stepping down of his free accord the 61-year-old emir would "score a first in the Arab world" where autocratic rulers have held power uncontested for decades until the Arab Spring revolutions that toppled regimes in Tunisia, Egypt and Libya.

Diplomats said that over the past three years the emir has increasingly handed over military and security responsibilities to Tamim, who like his father was educated at the British military academy Sandhurst.

The crown prince is joint commander of the armed forces and head of the country's Olympic committee, which is also in charge of organising the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar.

"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 tiny Gulf peninsula holds the world's third largest gas reserves and produces roughly 77 million tonnes of liquefied natural gas per year, making it the world's largest supplier

Analyst Neil Partrick, an expert on the Gulf, ruled out major changes in Qatar when Tamim, who was born in 1980, succeeds his father.

"Tamim already has responsibilities for sensitive foreign portfolios among other matters, and the emir is at least testing the domestic, regional and international waters about the idea of him jumping straight to the position of emir or at least shortly becoming a powerful premier," said Partrick.

"For Qatari foreign policy, none of this seems likely to produce major change. The young heir is unlikely to effect major changes without consulting his father," he added.

Qatar took part in the armed intervention in Libya and is actively supporting rebel forces who are trying to topple the regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.

It has major investments around the world, including in the French football club Paris Saint-Germain, in hotels, in a resort on the Italian island of Sardinia, as well as stakes in automobile company Volkswagen and in energy giant Total.