Ahmed bin Hussein al-Ghashmi (1941?-June 24 1978) was the President of the Yemen Arab Republic from 11 October 1977 until his death eight months later. Al-Ghashmi assumed power when his predecessor, Ibrahim al-Hamdi, was assassinated. Ghashmi himself was assassinated. His assassination occurred when he was meeting an envoy sent by People's Democratic Republic of Yemen President Salim Ali Rubai and a briefcase, reportedly containing a secret message, exploded, killing both al-Ghashmi and the envoy. It is not conclusively known who set off the explosion. Coincidently, Rubai died three days after this event.