Malaysian king dies in hospital

King Salahuddin Abdul Aziz Shah, elected by sultans under Malaysia’s unusual royal rotation system, died today after weeks of complications following heart surgery, prime minister Mahathir Mohamad announced.

Salahuddin, 75, who also was the sultan of Malaysia’s Selangor state, died in Kuala Lumpur’s Gleneagles private hospital at 3.57am Irish time, Mahathir said.