03-31-2020, 05:58 PM
Former President of Congo, Jacques Joaquim Yhombi dies of coronavirus in France
Former Republic of Congo president, Jacques Joaquim Yhombi Opango has passed away after contracting coronavirus (COVID-19). He was 81
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Yhombi-Opango died in a Paris hospital on Monday, his family confirmed to AFP.
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His son told the news agency that Yhombi-Opango was ill before he contracted the virus.
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Yhombi-Opango, who was an army officer who rose to power after the assassination of President Marien Ngouabi, led Congo-Brazzaville from 1977 until he was removed from power in 1979, with the country's current leader, Denis Sassou Nguesso taking over.Â
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In 1987, he was jailed for three years after he was accused of participating in a plot to overthrow Sassou Nguesso.
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After his release from prison, he founded the Rally for Democracy and Development (RDD) party but lost in a 1992 presidential election.
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In 1994, Yhombi-Opango became the prime minister but fled into exile in France when the civil war broke out in Congo in 1997.Â
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Former Republic of Congo president, Jacques Joaquim Yhombi Opango has passed away after contracting coronavirus (COVID-19). He was 81
Â
Yhombi-Opango died in a Paris hospital on Monday, his family confirmed to AFP.
Â
His son told the news agency that Yhombi-Opango was ill before he contracted the virus.
Â
Yhombi-Opango, who was an army officer who rose to power after the assassination of President Marien Ngouabi, led Congo-Brazzaville from 1977 until he was removed from power in 1979, with the country's current leader, Denis Sassou Nguesso taking over.Â
Â
In 1987, he was jailed for three years after he was accused of participating in a plot to overthrow Sassou Nguesso.
Â
After his release from prison, he founded the Rally for Democracy and Development (RDD) party but lost in a 1992 presidential election.
Â
In 1994, Yhombi-Opango became the prime minister but fled into exile in France when the civil war broke out in Congo in 1997.Â
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