Ahmed al-Mirghani

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Ahmad Al-Mirghani
أحمد الميرغني
Mirghani.gif
6th President of Sudan
In office
6 May 1986 – 30 June 1989
DeputyAbd al-Rahman Saeed
Preceded byAbdel Rahman Swar al-Dahab
Succeeded byOmar al-Bashir
Personal details
Born(1942-08-16)August 16, 1942
Khartoum North, Anglo-Egyptian Sudan
DiedNovember 2, 2008(2008-11-02) (aged 66)
Alexandria, Egypt
Political partyDemocratic Unionist Party
Children3
ReligionSunni Islam

Ahmad Ali Al-Mirghani (Arabic: أحمد الميرغني‎; 16 August 1942 – 2 November 2008) was the 6th President of Sudan from May 6, 1986, to June 30, 1989, when the democratically elected government was toppled by a military coup led by Omar al-Bashir.

Early life[]

Al-Mirghani was the descendant of the respected Mirghani family of Sudan and the great-great grandson of Al Sayyid Mohammed Uthman al-Mirghani al-Khatim. Ahmad Al-Mirghani held the title of Sayyid,[1] denoting that he was accepted as a descendant of the Islamic prophet Muhammad. He graduated with a First class degree from the University of London and returned to Sudan. His daughter currently resides in London with her four male children, two of whom are also at colleges that are a part of the University of London. He progressed through a professional career until the elections of 1986 when he was elected as the President of Sudan. He played a major role in convincing King Faisal of Saudi Arabia to travel and meet President Nasser of Egypt in Sudan in the famous 1967 Arab League summit in Khartoum.

Presidency[]

Al-Mirghani was elected President of Sudan in May 1986 during the country's last democratic elections. He was unseated in a 1989 coup led by Omar al-Bashir.[2]

Later years[]

Following the coup Al-Mirghani lived in Alexandria, Egypt. He returned to Sudan shortly before his death and lobbied for peace on the War in Darfur.[2] He actively worked on the Darfur file and was chosen as the head of the Darfur Circle in the Democratic Unionist Party. His final trip abroad was to Libya where he held a number of meetings with Darfur rebel groups and the Libyan leadership regarding the solutions to the Western Sudan problem.

Death[]

Al-Mirghani died in Egypt on November 2, 2008, at the age of 66. Several Sudanese politicians including the president travelled to the Mirghani base in Khartoum to mourn the former president.[2] His body was flown to Khartoum on November 5, and his funeral was held there on the same day. The funeral procession travelled from the airport in the south of the capital Khartoum through the city streets to the north of the capital, where he was buried.[3]

Panama Papers[]

Main article: Panama Papers

In April 2016, al-Mirghani was named in the Panama Papers as owner of Orange Star Corporation, which was created in 1995 and based in the British Virgin Islands. In 2008 at the time of al-Mirghani's death through the company he held 2.72 million US dollars in assets.[4]

References[]

  1. ^ "Shajara-e-nasab lineages of descendants of Imam Hasan al-Askari r.a.-Shajara.org". Archived from the original on 2020-07-03. Retrieved 2020-06-29.
  2. ^ Jump up to: a b c Osman, Mohamed (2008-11-03). "Former Sudan president dies in Egypt". Associated Press. eTaiwan News. Retrieved 2008-11-04.
  3. ^ "Sudan mourns former president", AFP (IOL), November 5, 2008.
  4. ^ "Panama Papers: The Power Players". International Consortium of Investigative Journalists. Retrieved April 3, 2016.

External links[]

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