KUWAIT CITY: Kuwait's Emir Sheikh Nawaf al-Ahmad al-Jaber al-Sabah died at the age of 86 on Saturday, according to Al Jazeera. The cause of his death is not known yet.

"With great sadness and sorrow, we--the Kuwaiti people, the Arab and Islamic nations, and the friendly peoples of the world--mourn the late His Highness the Emir, Sheikh Nawaf Al Ahmad Al Jaber Al Sabah, who passed away to his Lord today," Sheikh Mohammed Abdullah Al Sabah, the minister of his emiri court, said in a statement on Saturday as it aired on state television, according to Al Jazeera.

Sheikh Nawaf was sworn-in in September 2020, following the death in the United States of his half-brother, Sheikh Sabah al-Ahmad al-Jaber al-Sabah, at the age of 91.

Sheikh Meshal Al Ahmad Al Jaber, Kuwait's deputy ruler and half-brother, is said to be in a position to succeed him as ruler; however, no formal declaration has been made yet, Al Jazeera reported. Sheikh Nawaf maintained positions of influence for decades before ascending to the throne. In 2006, he was named heir apparent, and he was acting as defence minister when Iraqi soldiers invaded the oil-rich emirate in 1990.

In the wake of threats from armed organisations, he also served as interior minister. Sheikh Nawaf was sent to the hospital in late November for an undisclosed ailment, according to the state news agency KUNA. He was well-liked within the ruling al-Sabah family, had a reputation for humility, and kept a low profile.