Northern Nigerian Breaking News

Pakistani former President Pervez Musharraf dies

Pakistani former President Pervez Musharraf has died at a hospital in Dubai after a prolonged illness, military sources confirmed to Al Jazeera on Sunday. He was 79.

Musharraf, a four-star general, ruled Pakistan for nearly a decade after seizing power in a bloodless coup in 1999.

The former general was suffering from amyloidosis – a rare disease that causes organ damage. He had long been bedridden and wheelchair-bound.

In a brief statement released by the military’s media wing, senior military personnel expressed their “heartfelt condolences” on the demise of the former military ruler.

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“May Allah bless the departed soul and give strength to [his] bereaved family.”

Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif offered his condolences to Musharraf’s family on social media. “May the departed soul rest in peace,” he tweeted.

Reports say the former general’s family members were meeting to discuss whether his body will be brought back to Pakistan.

Musharraf, a former special forces commando, became president through the last of a string of military coups that roiled Pakistan since its founding amid the bloody 1947 partition of India.

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