Qatar emir Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa al-Thani abdicated the ruling post in favour of his 33-year-old son, Sheikh Tamim. The 61-year-old emir is the first ruler to voluntarily cede power in the Arab world, which has a long history of autocratic rulers. Sheikh Hamad himself came to power in a coup in which he overthrew his own father Sheikh Khalifa in June 1995