Pervez Musharraf, the army general who seized power in Pakistan in 1999 and ruled the impoverished Muslim-majority nation for nine tumultuous years, has passed away at the age of 79. The cause of his death has not been made known or reported, but he had been receiving medical treatment in Dubai.
He was a dictator who believed he could save a failing democracy, as well as a U.S. ally in a society with strong anti-American leanings.
Pakistan’s former president General Pervez Musharraf died on Sunday, February 5th, 2023, following a prolonged illness at a hospital in Dubai, after years in self-imposed exile.
The former military ruler of Pakistan was a controversial figure who led a reluctant Pakistan into aiding the US war in Afghanistan against the same Taliban fighters his nation had previously backed, even as Islamic militants twice targeted him for assassination.
Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif offered his condolences to Musharraf’s family on social media, tweeting: “May the departed soul rest in peace.”
The former special forces commando became president through the last of a string of military coups that hit Pakistan after its founding amid the bloody 1947 partition of India.
He ruled the nuclear-armed state after his 1999 coup through turbulent times, including tensions with India, an atomic proliferation scandal and an Islamic extremist insurgency.
In a similar report, Vice President Badara Joof of The Gambia was pronounced dead by President Adama Barrow on Wednesday, January 18.
President Barrow in an emotional tweet made the announcement, saying: “Fellow #Gambians, it is with a heavy heart that I announce the passing away of my #VicePresident, His Excellency, Badara Alieu Joof. The sad event took place in India after a short illness. May Allah grant him Jannahtul Firdawsi.”
All Progressives Congress national leader and leading presidential aspirant, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, described the President of the United Arab Emirates, Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nayhan, who died on Friday, May 13, as a great reformer and visionary leader who reshaped the governance and economy of the UAE.
In a condolence message, Asiwaju Tinubu said: “The passing on Friday of Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nayhan, the President of the United Arab Emirates, saddened me. Sheikh Khalifa was a great reformer and a visionary leader who reshaped and improved the governance and economy of the United Arab Emirates.”
Pakistan’s former president General Pervez Musharraf passed away on Sunday, February 5th, 2023, after a prolonged illness at a hospital in Dubai, after years in self-imposed exile. The former military ruler of Pakistan was a controversial figure who led a reluctant Pakistan into aiding the US war in Afghanistan against the same Taliban fighters his nation had previously backed, even as Islamic militants twice targeted him for assassination. Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif offered his condolences to Musharraf’s family on social media, tweeting: “May the departed soul rest in peace.”
