A man who was seen as a major stabilizing figure in the turbulent Middle East is dead at the age of 90.

Saudi King Abdullah died early Friday after what palace sources called “a short illness.”  Abdullah had ruled Saudi Arabia since 2005 after the death of King Fahd.

Many residents of the nation saw Abdullah as a reformer.  He allowed women the right to vote and to compete in the Olympics.  He maintained close relationships with the United States and Britain, buying most of the nation’s defense equipment from the two nations.

He also made domestic violence against women a crime for the first time in the nation’s history.

He was also a major opponent to Islamic terrorism and called it not only a threat to the region but also to Islam.  He launched education programs that were aimed at stopping Al-Qaeda from gaining a foothold with youth.  He also took actions to keep the most extreme parts of Saudi Arabia’s religious establishment from being able to spread their message in the nation.

King Abdullah was found through diplomatic messages published by Wikileaks to have asked the United States to implant microchips on all terrorists at Guantanamo Bay to allow world governments to track their movements.  He also privately urged the U.S. to attack Iran to destroy their nuclear program.

Former Crown Prince Salman became King.  He appointed officials to new roles within hours of the death of King Abdullah, unusual in the Saudi succession pattern, which usually took months.  Reportedly King Salman wanted to “show strength to Islamic extremists” that “Saudi Arabia is united.”