Sultan Abdullah sworn in as Malaysia's new king

KUALA LUMPUR - Sultan Abdullah Sultan Ahmad Shah was sworn in as Malaysia's 16th king in a ceremony at the national palace on Thursday.

Abdullah took his oath and signed the instruments of office with the country's other hereditary rulers witnessing the event.

Abdullah, ruler of the Malaysian state of Pahang, is joined by Sultan Nazrin Shah of Perak as the deputy head of state for the next five years.

Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad was present at the ceremony along with his cabinet ministers to accept the installment of the new king.

Earlier, a welcome ceremony was held at the parliament square as Abdullah inspected the guard of honor.

Abdullah, 59, is heavily involved in sports and is a council member of the ASEAN Football Federation (AFF) and a council member of FIFA, the football international governing body. He was the president of the Football Association of Malaysia.

His appointment came after his predecessor Sultan Muhammad V of Kelantan state resigned on Jan 6.

Malaysia is a constitutional monarchy, with nine sultans or rulers, who head their respective state and act as the religious leader, taking turns to serve as the king for a five-year term.