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News > Latin America

Guatemala's Former President Alvaro Arzu Dies at 72

  • Local media reported that Arzu, 72, was playing golf in the company of friends when he suffered a heart attack.

    Local media reported that Arzu, 72, was playing golf in the company of friends when he suffered a heart attack. | Photo: Reuters

Published 27 April 2018
Opinion

During his presidential term, between 1996 and 2000, a peace treaty was signed that put an end to the conflict with communist guerrillas that left thousands dead.

Guatemala's former President Alvaro Arzu, who signed the peace accords that ended 36 years of civil war in the Central American country, died of a heart attack on Friday, authorities said.

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Local media reported that Arzu, 72, was playing golf in the company of friends when he suffered a heart attack. Arzu was taken to a nearby hospital, where he later died.

The death was confirmed to Reuters by the presidential spokesman, Heinz Heimann, without offering further details.

"Guatemala has lost a great man who dedicated his life to serve," President Jimmy Morales posted on his Twitter account. 

Arzu had served as mayor of Guatemala City since 2004, in his fourth consecutive term, having previously ruled the capital between 1986 and 1990.

During his presidential term, between 1996 and 2000, a peace treaty was signed that put an end to the conflict with the communist guerrillas that left thousands dead.

Last year, however, Arzu was added to a long list of influential politicians being investigated for alleged corruption.

The Guatemalan Prosecutor's Office and CICIG, an anti-corruption body backed by the United Nations, accused him of having diverted resources from the municipality to the campaign for his last re-election.

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