Saudi Arabia’s King Fahd dies in hospital after long illness

The Saudi royal court on Monday morning issued a statement saying King Fahd has died in a Riyadh hospital where he was being treated. His brother, Crown Prince Abdullah, has been appointed country’s new monarch, the statement said. „With deep sorrow and pain, the royal court… mourns the death of The Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Fahd due to illness,” said an official statement read out on Saudi state television. Saudi state television interrupted regular broadcasting with recitations of the Koran and one Western diplomat said he had information that King Fahd had died in hospital on Monday. „Sources at King Faisal Specialist Hospital have informed us that he (King Fahd) is dead,” the diplomat said. He did not give further details. BPI-info