VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

Kuwaiti Crown Prince Sheikh Nawaf Al Ahmad Al Sabah became the emir of the new ruler of the oil-rich nation on Tuesday night, according to state media reports, occupying the highest position after decades of service in the security service.

Sheikh Nawaf, 83, has served as crown prince since 2006, leaping over the traditional order between the Al Jaber and Al Salam descendants of the royal ruling family.

State television carried a speech by Anas Khalid al-Saleh, the Minister of Home Affairs and Deputy Prime Minister of Kuwait, announcing that Sheikh Nawaf was sworn in hours after the death of Sheikh Sabah, as quoted by The New Arab.

Sheikh Nawaf, like Sheikh Sabah, was born before Kuwait discovered the oil fields that made this small country one of the richest countries in the world. Born June 25, 1937, Sheikh Nawaf became governor of the Hawalli region of Kuwait and later became the country's interior minister, a position he held for nearly a decade.

Sheikh Nawaf served as the Kuwaiti defense minister starting in 1988. He was cast in 1990 when Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein invaded Kuwait and occupied the country for seven months. On February 24, 1991, US and allied forces invaded Kuwait and ended 100 hours later.

America only suffered 148 deaths from fighting during the entire campaign, while more than 20,000 Iraqi soldiers were killed. Sheikh Nawaf served as Minister of Social Affairs and Labor after the war, then as Deputy Chief of the Kuwaiti National Guard and again as Minister of the Interior. He became crown prince under Sheikh Sabah in February 2006.

Shaykh Nawaf is married, has four sons and one daughter. (RRI)