Pakistan: Former President Musharraf Dies at 79

Pakistan’s former leader, General Pervez Musharraf has died.

In a statement from the country’s army, the former President who seized power in a coup in 1999 died in Dubai after a long illness.

General Pervez Musharraf had survived multiple assassination attempts and found himself on the front line of the struggle between militant Islamists and the West.

In 2008 he suffered defeat in the polls and left the country six months later.

When he returned in 2013 to try to contest the election, he was arrested and barred from standing. He was charged with high treason and was sentenced to death in absentia only for the decision to be overturned less than a month later.

He left Pakistan for Dubai in 2016 to seek medical treatment and had been living in exile in the country ever since. He died at age 79.

Credit: BBC