Saudi Crown Prince Sultan bin Abdul-Aziz passes away

Saudi Crown Prince Sultan bin Abdul-Aziz has died, several news sites reported on Saturday. He was around 86.

Crown Prince Sultan was diagnosed with colon cancer in 2004. He had underwent several corrective surgeries and an operation to remove an intestinal polyp. Since June this year, the Crown Prince had been in the United States for medical treatments.

Prince Sultan is survived by 32 children from multiple wives. They include Bandar who was Saudi's Ambassador to the United States from 1983 to 2005 and now the head of the National Security Council; Khaled, Sultan's assistant in the Defense Ministry; and Fahd who is Deputy President of Sport and Welfare.

Prince Sultan's brother Prince Nayef, 78, is next in line to become Saudi's new Crown Prince and the successor of King Abdullah as leader of the oil-rich nation.