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Ethiopian PM Meles Zenawi dies after illness | Ethiopian PM Meles Zenawi dies after illness |
(40 minutes later) | |
Ethiopian Prime Minister Meles Zenawi has died at the age of 57, state media say, after weeks of illness. | |
Mr Meles died in a hospital abroad, said state media and a government spokesman, but they did not say exactly where or give details of his ailment. | |
Speculation about his health mounted when he missed an African Union summit in Addis Ababa last month. | |
Mr Meles took power as the leader of rebels that ousted communist leader Mengistu Haile Mariam in 1991. | Mr Meles took power as the leader of rebels that ousted communist leader Mengistu Haile Mariam in 1991. |
He had dominated Ethiopian public life since the 1990s, as president and then prime minister. | |
He was austere and hardworking, with a discipline forged from years spent in the guerrilla movement - and almost never smiled, says Elizabeth Blunt, the BBC's former correspondent in Addis Ababa. | |
'Sudden infection' | |
"Prime Minister Meles Zenawi passed away yesterday [Monday] evening at around midnight," government spokesman Bereket Simon said, adding that he was "abroad" when he died, according to AFP news agency. | |
"He had been recuperating well, but suddenly something happened and he had to be rushed to the ICU [intensive care unit] and they couldn't keep him alive." | |
State television said he had died after contracting a "sudden" infection. | |
Deputy Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn, who is also Ethiopia's foreign minister, will be acting head of government, state television said. | Deputy Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn, who is also Ethiopia's foreign minister, will be acting head of government, state television said. |
"Even if Ethiopia has been badly affected for missing its great leader, Prime Minister Meles Zenawi initiated fundamental policies and strategies which will be further strengthened," the TV said. | "Even if Ethiopia has been badly affected for missing its great leader, Prime Minister Meles Zenawi initiated fundamental policies and strategies which will be further strengthened," the TV said. |
Mr Meles had not been seen in public for some eight weeks prior to his death, and was reported to have been admitted to hospital in July. | |
But three weeks ago, the spokesman Mr Bereket told the BBC that he was in "a good condition and recuperating", and dismissed reports he was critically ill. | |
At the time he declined to give any details about Mr Meles' whereabouts or what he was suffering from. | |
But reports suggested Mr Meles was in hospital in Belgium, suffering from a stomach complaint. | |
What are your memories of Meles Zenawi? What do you think is his political legacy in Ethiopia and the rest of Africa? Send us your comments using the form below. | |
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