Half-day state mourning in Bangladesh on Thursday for Qatar's former Emir

Bangladesh will observe a half-day state mourning on Thursday, July 16, following the death of Qatar's former Emir, Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani.

Local Government Minister Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir announced the decision after signing the condolence book at the Qatari embassy in Gulshan on Monday, July 13.

A delegation led by the Speaker of Parliament will visit Doha to express Bangladesh's solidarity and condolences to the Emir of Qatar, the royal family and the people of Qatar, according to a foreign ministry press release.

Sheikh Hamad, who ruled Qatar from 1995 to 2013, died on Sunday at the age of 74. He oversaw rapid economic transformation and the rise of Qatar as a major LNG exporter, launched Al Jazeera in 1996, and introduced Qatar's first permanent constitution and women's suffrage and candidacy in local elections.