Haitham bin Tariq, Oman's culture minister and the 65-year-old cousin of late Sultan Qaboos, has been sworn in as the new royal ruler, the government has said.
"Haitham bin Tariq was sworn in as the new sultan of the country... after a meeting of the family which decided to appoint the one who was chosen by the sultan," the government said in a tweet.
Sultan Qaboos, the longest-reigning leader of the modern Arab world who died yesterday at the age of 79, was unmarried and had no children, and left no apparent heir.
According to the Omani constitution, the royal family had three days to determine the successor and if they failed to agree, the person chosen by Qaboos in a letter addressed to the family would be the successor.
Most experts had expected the throne to go to Asad bin Tariq, another cousin, who was appointed deputy prime minister for international relations and co-operation affairs in 2017 in what was seen as a clear message of support.
Mr Haitham, a sports enthusiast, held the position of undersecretary of the ministry of foreign affairs for political affairs before becoming the minister of heritage and culture in the mid-1990s.
He was also the first head of Oman's football federation in the early 80s.
Sultan Qaboos ushered in Oman renaissance, quiet diplomacy
Sultan Qaboos bin Said transformed Oman during his 49-year reign from a poverty-stricken country torn by dissent into a prosperous state and an internationally trusted mediator for some of the region'sthorniest issues.
He became sultan in July 1970 after deposing his father in a palace coup with the aim of ending the country's isolation and using its oil revenue for modernisation and development.
The 79-year-old never publicly named a successor but secretly recorded his choice in a sealed letter should the royal family disagree on the succession line.
"I have already written down two names, in descending order, and put them in sealed envelopes in two different regions," he said in a 1997 interview.
State television said his cousin Haitham bin Tariq al-Said was named sultan on Saturday after the high military council called on the ruling family council to choose a successor.
The family had followed Qaboos' written recommendation, believing in "his wisdom and vision", a military council statement said.
State media did not disclose the cause of death.
Mr Qaboos, who has dominated decision making in the Gulf state for decades, had been ailing for years and was in Belgium in December for treatment.
Analysts worry about royal family discord, and a resurgence of tribal rivalries and political instability, now a new ruler has to be chosen at a time when young hawks have assumed power in neighbouring Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.
Sultan Qaboos healed old rifts in a country long divided between a conservative tribal interior and seafaring coastal region. He became known to his countrymen as "the renaissance", investing billions of dollars of oil revenues in infrastructure and building one of the best-trained armed forces in the region.
