Kuwaiti emir for nine days in 2006

Sheik Saad Al Abdullah Al Sabah, 78, a former Kuwaiti emir who ruled the small oil-rich kingdom for nine days in 2006 before being removed because of ill health, died Tuesday in Kuwait City, state television reported.

As crown prince, Saad automatically became ruler when his distant cousin and then emir, Sheik Jaber Al Ahmed Al Sabah, died Jan. 15, 2006.

But it became increasingly clear that Saad’s poor health would not allow him to carry out his new responsibilities.

His health started deteriorating after he suffered colon bleeding in 1997.

When he appeared on television after the death of Jaber, he was in a wheelchair and could barely shake hands with visitors.

In a historic vote Jan. 23, 2006, the parliament removed Saad from power because of his health and confirmed the current emir, Sheik Sabah Al Ahmed Al Sabah, as ruler.

Born in 1930, Saad became crown prince and prime minister of Kuwait in 1978.