Qatar ruler hands power to son to mark ‘new era’

FILE - In this Tuesday, March 26, 2013 file photo, Emir of Qatar Sheik Hamad Bin Khalifa Al Thani, center, attends the opening session of the Arab League Summit in Doha. Qatar’s emir moves to hand power over to his son, aiming to bring a youthful new face to rule in a tiny Gulf nation that has become one of the most powerful in the Middle East, aggressively spreading its influence through cash. (AP Photo/Ghiath Mohamad, File)DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Qatar’s ruler formally handed power Tuesday to his 33-year-old son to cap a carefully crafted transition that puts a younger generation in charge of the Gulf nation’s vast energy wealth and rising political influence after the upheavals of the Arab Spring.

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