KUALA LUMPUR: Former Malaysian Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi died on Monday, aged 85, his family and medical authorities reported.
Abdullah became Malaysia’s fifth prime minister in 2003, following the resignation of veteran leader Mahathir Mohamad after 22 years at the helm.
The former premier died at 7:10 p.m. (1110 GMT) at the National Heart Institute in the capital Kuala Lumpur, his son-in-law and former health minister Khairy Jamaluddin said in an Instagram post, without specifying a cause of death.
Abdullah was admitted to the National Heart Institute on Sunday after experiencing breathing difficulties and was immediately placed under intensive care, the institute said in a statement.
“Despite all medical efforts, he passed away peacefully, surrounded by his loved ones,” the institute said.
As premier of the Muslim-majority country, Abdullah embarked on an anti-corruption drive and espoused a moderate version of Islam that aimed for economic and technological progress over religious fundamentalism. But he came under public criticism for his review of fuel subsidies that saw a sharp spike in prices.
Abdullah stepped down in 2009, a year after an election that saw the then-ruling Barisan Nasional coalition lose its parliamentary supermajority for the first time in the country’s history. He was succeeded by Najib Razak.
Former Malaysia PM Abdullah dies aged 85, family and medical authorities say
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Former Malaysia PM Abdullah dies aged 85, family and medical authorities say
- Abdullah became Malaysia’s fifth prime minister in 2003, following the resignation of veteran leader Mahathir Mohamad after 22 years at the helm
UN chief Guterres warns ‘powerful forces’ undermining global ties
- Guterres paid tribute to Britain for its decisive role in the creation of the United Nations
- He said 2025 had been a “profoundly challenging year for international cooperation and the values of the UN“
LONDON: UN chief Antonio Guterres Saturday deplored a host of “powerful forces lining up to undermine global cooperation” in a London speech marking the 80th anniversary of the first UN General Assembly.
Guterres, whose term as secretary-general ends on December 31 this year, delivered the warning at the Methodist Central Hall in London, where representatives from 51 countries met on January 10, 1946, for the General Assembly’s first session.
They met in London because the UN headquarters in New York had not yet been built.
Guterres paid tribute to Britain for its decisive role in the creation of the United Nations and for continuing to champion it.
But he said 2025 had been a “profoundly challenging year for international cooperation and the values of the UN.”
“We see powerful forces lining up to undermine global cooperation,” he said, adding: “Despite these rough seas, we sail ahead.”
Guterres cited a new treaty on marine biological diversity as an example of continued progress.
The treaty establishes the first legal framework for the conservation and sustainable use of marine diversity in the two-thirds of oceans beyond national limits.
“These quiet victories of international cooperation — the wars prevented, the famine averted, the vital treaties secured — do not always make the headlines,” he said.
“Yet they are real. And they matter.”
