New Delhi, July 12 -- DOHA - He came to power by deposing his own father, then left by handing the throne to his son. Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani, the former Emir of Qatar who transformed a gas-rich Gulf sheikhdom into one of the most consequential small states in the world, died Sunday. He was 74.

Qatar's Amiri Diwan, the nation's top governing body, announced his death in a statement released Sunday morning. "The Amiri Diwan mourns the great loss to the nation of the late, may God have mercy on him, His Highness the Father Amir Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani, who passed away this morning," the court said, in an announcement confirmed by Al Jazeera. No cause of death was announced.

He is survived by his son, Emir Sheikh Tamim ...