Former UN secretary-general Kofi Annan died in Switzerland

Former UN secretary-general Kofi Annan died in Switzerland today. He was 80.

The Kofi Annan Foundation said, he passed away peacefully after a short illness. He was the first black African to become UN secretary-general.

Mr Annan served two terms as UN chief from 1997 to 2006. He later served as the UN special envoy for Syria, leading efforts to find a peaceful solution to the conflict.

He was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2001 for helping to revitalise the international body, during a period that coincided with the Iraq War and the HIV/Aids pandemic.

UN high commissioner for human rights Zeid Raad Al Hussein said, he was grief-stricken over Annan’s death.

Leave a Reply