Former Saudi Health Minister Osama Shobokshi dies at age 80

Riyadh, The Gulf Observer: Saudi Arabia’s former Minister of Health and former ambassador to Germany Dr. Osama Shobokshi died on Friday at the age of 80 after suffering from a period of illness.

The funeral prayer for the deceased was held at Juffali Mosque in Jeddah after Asr prayer on Friday.

A number of doctors, media professionals, and activists mourned Dr. Shobokshi, asking God Almighty to bless him with the abundance of His mercy. They enumerated his exploits and contributions in many fields.

Shobokshi was born in Jeddah in 1943 AD. He obtained a PhD in internal medicine from the University of Erlangen in Germany and received an honorary fellowship from the Irish Royal College of Surgeons.

Shobokshi worked as a lecturer at the Faculty of Medicine in King Abdulaziz University in Jeddah. He also held a number of leadership positions in the field of healthcare. He was a member of a number of hospital boards, and a director of King Abdulaziz University in Jeddah.

Dr. Shobokshi was Minister of Health from 1416 AH to 1424 AH, during the reign of King Fahd, and then an advisor at the Royal Court. Later he was appointed as the Kingdom’s ambassador to Germany.