Former Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak died at the age of 91 after failing to recover from a surgery in Cairo, state-run TV reported on Tuesday.

Mubarak's son Alaa said his father died on Tuesday morning in a tweet that included images of Mubarak.

The former president had long been battling an illness and was recently admitted to an intensive care unit.

Egypt's armed forces described him as a "war hero," and he is set to be given a military funeral. 

Reacting to Mubarak's death, the United Arab Emirates' Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Anwar Gargash, said the Arab world had lost a statesman who took significant national and historic positions. 

Mubarak was removed from power in 2011 by the military after 18-day mass protests. He was arrested two months later and spent several years in prison and military hospitals.

He was sentenced to life in prison for conspiring to murder 239 demonstrators during the 18-day revolt but was freed in 2017 after being cleared of the charges.

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Mubarak took power in 1981, following the assassination of former president Anwar al-Sadat, and remained head of state for three decades. 

He had survived multiple assassination attempts.