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Mali’s former president Amadou Toumani Touré, who led the Sahel nation for 10 years before being ousted in a coup, has died in Turkey aged 72, a close aide said on Tuesday.
A former army general, Touré won acclaim for pursuing democratic reforms after he helped topple the country’s longtime military ruler Moussa Traoré.
But he was himself ousted in a military coup in 2012, shortly before the country’s restive north was overrun by Tuareg rebels and jihadist militants.
The former president died in Turkey on Monday night, his chief of staff Seydou Cissouma told Reuters, providing no further details.
French-speaking magazine Jeune Afrique reported that Touré had previously undergone a heart operation in Bamako.
Senegal President Macky Sall tweeted: “I am heartbroken to learn of the death of His Excellency Amadou Toumani Toure, former president of Mali. I salute the memory of this renowned figure and present my deepest condolences to his family and the Malian people. May he rest in peace.”
Je suis peiné d’apprendre le décès de SEM Amadou Toumani Touré, ancien Président de la République du Mali. Je salue la mémoire de l’illustre défunt et présente mes condoléances émues à sa famille et au peuple malien ami et frère. Paix à son âme.
— Macky Sall (@Macky_Sall) November 10, 2020
