He is the only top-ranking Yemeni official to die from the attack despite the efforts of local doctors at a Riyadh hospital to save him, said a Yemeni diplomat in the capital. A large number of Saleh’s aides were also injured.
He said Abdulghani’s condition started deteriorating over the last few days in the intensive care unit of Riyadh Military Hospital.
A former prime minister and vice president of North Yemen, Abdulghani’s body will be airlifted to Sanaa, where he will be buried Wednesday, he added.
He said Saleh and top ruling party leaders have expressed grief over the chairman’s death.
Saleh and several other officials, who left the Riyadh hospital after being treated, are still recuperating in a temporary residence here.
Prime Minister Ali Mujawar and a few other top aides who were also hit in the attack remain in hospital and are expected to be discharged within weeks on a staggered schedule as per doctors’ advice.
Born in 1939, Abdulghani served as prime minister of Yemen from 1994 to 1997 under President Saleh. He was a member of the ruling General People's Congress party of Yemen.
