Former US President George H.W. Bush died on Friday evening at the age of 94.
He passed away at his home in Houston, Texas, his office confirmed in a statement.
The statement did not specify the cause of death, but Bush had a form of Parkinson’s disease and had been hospitalized several times for pneumonia and other infections over recent years. Just days ago Bush had reportedly being treated for low blood pressure.
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War criminal and former British Prime Minister Tony Blair described Daddy Bush as “an extraordinary and exemplary public servant, a man dedicated to his country, the values it stands for at its best and to making the world better, more stable and more peaceful”.
RT reports: The 41st president died at 10:10pm (local time) on Friday. Funeral arrangements will be announced some time later, the spokesperson for the Bush family, Jim McGrath, said in a statement.
Statement by the Office of George H. W. Bush on the passing of the 41st President of the United States of America this evening at 10:10pm CT at the age of 94. pic.twitter.com/XUPgha2aUW
— Jim McGrath (@jgm41) December 1, 2018
His health deteriorated in recent years, as he suffered from lower-body Parkinson’s disease and was confined to a wheelchair. In April, Bush was discharged from a hospital after receiving treatment for low blood pressure.
Former US leader as well, George W. Bush, called his late father “a man of the highest character and the best dad a son or daughter could ask for.”
Current President Donald Trump praised Bush for his “essential authenticity” and “disarming wit.” His “unflappable leadership” brought the US and the world “to a peaceful and victorious conclusion of the Cold War,” Trump said.
Statement from President Donald J. Trump and First Lady Melania Trump on the Passing of Former President George H.W. Bush pic.twitter.com/qxPsp4Ggs7
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 1, 2018
Among the many heads of state and senior foreign politicians who expressed condolences to the Bush family were French President Emmanuel Macron, German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, and Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Born in Milton, Massachusetts, in 1924, George Herbert Walker Bush came from a well-connected family. His father was a prominent banker who later became a US Senator.
Bush joined the Navy at 18, becoming one of its youngest fighter pilots in World War II. During the war, he flew multiple combat missions and was shot down at one point. Upon his return home, the young man was awarded with a Distinguished Flying Cross.
A Yale graduate, Bush spent two decades working in the oil industry before eventually entering politics.
In 1967, Bush was elected to Congress. His career took a detour into the diplomatic front in 1971 when he was appointed the US envoy to the United Nations. He later held a diplomatic post in Beijing, and even led the CIA for a year.
Bush first moved into the White House in 1981 at the height of the Cold War, serving as vice president under Ronald Reagan. After assuming the presidency in 1989, Bush, along with Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev, helped to end the dangerous confrontation between the two superpowers.
In 1991, he led the nation during the Gulf War against Iraq after its leader Saddam Hussein invaded Kuwait the year before. Bush also launched a controversial invasion in Panama, dubbed ‘Operation Just Cause’, which ended in the ousting and arrest of the country’s ruler, Manuel Noriega.
