Ras Al Khaimah Rashid Hamdoon Saeed Al Naqbi, believed to be the oldest man in the UAE, died at the age of 107 on Monday in Ras Al Khaimah, confirmed family members.
Al Naqbi, born June 1, 1904, died comfortably in his bed, of natural causes, at home in the Al Oraibi area of Ras Al Khaimah.
His son-in-law, Rashid Saeed, said yesterday that the family will miss Al Naqbi's humour, tales of the desert from yesteryears and his nightly gatherings with relatives.
"We are very sad," Saeed told Gulf News in an interview from the family home.
Mourners
A large number of mourners from across the UAE attended the funeral services at the Al Naqbi home Tuesday. They extended their condolences on the loss of a man who was viewed as wise and experienced down the years.
Al Naqbi, who lived through two World Wars and witnessed the UAE morph into a modern country, lived long enough to see his 14 grandsons grow.
Married over the years to five wives, he lost his last wife and son, who was in military service, to a car accident in 1998 but never let despair get the better of him.
Pride of family
He continued to live as full a life as possible until the end. Most recently, he brought much pride to the family when he was listed on the Ras Al Khaimah voters list in the summer of 2011.
At that time, his son-in-law said, "It is a great honour for all of us. He thought he was forgotten since retirement. Listing of his name would strengthen his self-confidence and would help in keeping him connected with society."
Last summer, Gulf News visited Al Naqbi at his home and found him to be a gentle, highly articulate man of few words.
His gratitude to the late Shaikh Zayed was still as strong as ever. "May Allah bless the soul of Shaikh Zayed, who gave me the house. There are no words to describe the generosity and care of Shaikh Zayed towards his people," Al Naqbi said at the time.
"We used to visit Shaikh Zayed during Ramadan and Eid after prayers. We used to visit the late Shaikh Saqr, the former ruler of Ras Al Khaimah," he said.
