New Delhi: European Union Parliament President David Sassoli died on Tuesday, January 11, in Italy. He was 65 years old.
Sassoli had been ill for the past few months.
His spokesperson Roberto Cuillo took to Twitter to share this news. He said Sassoli passed away at 1.15 AM in Italy where he was in hospital. He said the details regarding his funeral would be communicated shortly.
In an earlier tweet, Cuillo had shared that Sassoli had been admitted to hospital since December 26. He was dealing with a serious complication because of the dysfunction of his immune system. Cuillo told Italy’s SkyTG24: “In the final week of December there was a worsening of the illness, and then the final days of his battle.”
Sassoli suffered pneumonia caused by the legionella bacteria in September, which forced him to miss out on many important legislative meetings. He is survived by his wife Alessandra Vittorini, and children, Livia and Giulio.
Sassoli was an Italian journalist who later turned to politics. He was first elected to the European Parliament in 2009, and then for another term in 2014. He was appointed as President of the European Union Parliament in 2019.
His appointment came at a time when political infighting was happening between some of the EU leaders. Sassoli’s two-and-a-half-year tenure was marked with the challenges of the pandemic.
Condolences are pouring in for the leader from different corners of the world.