Zambia's former president Edgar Lungu has died, his party says
Zambia's President Edgar Chagwa Lungu addresses the 74th session of the United Nations General Assembly at U.N. headquarters in New York City, New York, U.S., September 25, 2019. REUTERS/Lucas Jackson/File Photo
Zambia's former president Edgar Lungu has died, his party says
LUSAKA - Former Zambian President Edgar Lungu has died aged 68, his political party the Patriotic Front said on Thursday.
Lungu was head of state of the Southern African country between 2015 and 2021, when he lost an election to current President Hakainde Hichilema.
"The former president, who has been receiving specialized treatment in South Africa, died today on Thursday, 5th June," the Patriotic Front's statement on Facebook said.
The party said Lungu's daughter and a family lawyer had confirmed that Lungu had died. REUTERS
Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles

Straits Times
7 minutes ago
- Straits Times
South Korea's Lee, Trump agree to work towards ‘satisfactory' tariff deal
South Korea's new president Lee Jae-myung and US President Donald Trump spoke in their first phone call on June 6. PHOTO: REUTERS, EPA-EFE SEOUL - US President Donald Trump and South Korea's new president Lee Jae-myung agreed to work toward a swift tariff deal and shared stories about their experiences in their first phone call since Lee was elected, his office said on June 6. Mr Trump has imposed tariffs on South Korea, which has a bilateral free trade deal, pressed it to pay more for the 28,500 troops stationed there and increased competition with China. The future of South Korea's export-oriented economy will hinge on what kind of deal Mr Lee can strike, with all of his country's key sectors from chips to autos and shipbuilding heavily exposed to global trade. His term began on June 11. 'The two presidents agreed to make an effort to reach a satisfactory agreement on tariff consultations as soon as possible that both countries can be satisfied with,' Mr Lee's office said in a statement. 'To this end, they decided to encourage working-level negotiations to yield tangible results.' Mr Trump invited Mr Lee to a summit in the US and they plan to meet soon, according to a White House official. The two leaders also shared stories from the campaign trail, including of assassination attempts and political difficulties, and agreed that strong leadership emerges as they overcome difficulties, Mr Lee's office said. Mr Lee survived a knife attack and underwent surgery when he was stabbed in the neck by a man during an event in 2024. Mr Trump and Mr Lee also talked of their golf skills and agreed to play golf when possible, Mr Lee's office said, while Mr Lee mentioned that he was gifted a hat with Mr Trump's signature on it. South Korea, a major US ally and one of the first countries to engage with Washington after Japan on trade talks, agreed in late April to craft a 'July package' scrapping levies before the 90-day pause on Mr Trump's reciprocal tariffs is lifted, but progress was disrupted by upheavals in its leadership. Mr Lee, a liberal, was elected on June 3 after the US ally's former conservative leader, Yoon Suk Yeol, was impeached and ousted. Mr Lee said on the eve of the elections that 'the most pressing matter is trade negotiations with the United States.' Mr Lee's camp has said, however, that they intend to seek more time to negotiate on trade with Mr Trump. While reiterating the importance of the US-South Korea alliance, Mr Lee has also expressed more conciliatory plans for ties with China and North Korea, singling out the importance of China as a major trading partner while indicating reluctance to take a firm stance on security tensions in the Taiwan Strait. REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.

Straits Times
29 minutes ago
- Straits Times
US targets Iran's shadow banking with new sanctions
WASHINGTON - The U.S. issued Iran-related sanctions targeting more than 30 individuals and entities it said are part of a "shadow banking" network that has laundered billions of dollars through the global financial system, the Treasury Department said on Friday. The sanctions, which target Iranian nationals and some entities in the United Arab Emirates and Hong Kong, were announced as U.S. President Donald Trump's administration is working to get a new nuclear deal with Tehran. Treasury said at least two of the companies were linked to Iran's national tanker company. "Iran's shadow banking system is a critical lifeline for the regime through which it accesses the proceeds from its oil sales, moves money, and funds its destabilizing activities," Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said. The U.S. believes the network helps Tehran fund its nuclear and missile programs and support its militant proxies throughout the Middle East. It was the first round of U.S. sanctions targeting the shadow banking infrastructure since Trump re-imposed "maximum pressure" on Iran in February, Treasury said. Talks between Iran and the U.S. that aim to resolve a decades-long dispute over Tehran's nuclear ambitions have been stuck over disagreements about uranium enrichment. Treasury said the individuals and entities are tied to Iranian brothers Mansour, Nasser, and Fazlolah Zarringhalam, who collectively laundered billions of dollars through the international financial system. Treasury said the brothers operate exchange houses in Iran and a network of front companies in Hong Kong and the UAE, but did not say where they are located. Iran's mission to the United Nations in New York did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Reuters was not able to locate the brothers for comment. Treasury said front companies in the network operate accounts in multiple currencies at various banks to facilitate payments for blocked Iranian entities selling Iranian oil. Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control added Ace Petrochem FZE, and Moderate General Trading LLC, both registered in the UAE, to its Specially Designated Nationals list, freezing any of their U.S. assets. OFAC said they are both linked to the state-owned National Iranian Tanker Company which is under U.S. sanctions for exporting Iranian oil. REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.

Straits Times
29 minutes ago
- Straits Times
Africa Corps to stay in Mali after Russia's Wagner mercenary group leaves
MOSCOW/DAKAR - The Africa Corps, a Kremlin-controlled paramilitary force, said on Friday it will stay in Mali after Russia's Wagner mercenary group leaves following a 3-1/2 year fight against Islamist militants. Wagner has been in Mali since the army, which seized power in two coups in 2020 and 2021, kicked out French and United Nations troops involved in fighting Islamic insurgents for a decade. The Africa Corps was created with the Russian Defence Ministry's support after Wagner founder Yevgeny Prigozhin and commander Dmitry Utkin led a failed military mutiny against the Russian army leadership and left Russia for Belarus with other mercenaries. About 70-80% of the Africa Corps is made up of former Wagner mercenaries, according to several Telegram chats used by Russian mercenaries seen by Reuters. Wagner posted on social media that it was returning home after its mission in Mali had been successfully completed. It added it had brought all of the country's regional centres back under the control of the Malian military junta, pushing out Islamist forces and killing their commanders. Wagner did not say what its fighters would do back in Russia. The Africa Corps said on its Telegram channel that Wagner's departure would not introduce any changes as the Russian contingent will remain in Mali. "Russia does not lose ground, but on the contrary, continues to support Bamako now at a more fundamental level," it said, referring to the capital city. The Malian defence ministry did not immediately respond to a request for a comment. A spate of attacks erupted in recent weeks, which insurgents said killed more than 100 Malian soldiers and some mercenaries. Jama'a Nusrat ul-Islam wa al-Muslimin (JNIM), an insurgent group in West Africa's Sahel region, claimed responsibility for the violence in recent days, including a bombing attack on Wednesday against Malian and Russian soldiers near Bamako. Russia has been seeking to replace Wagner with the Africa Corps in Mali, Ulf Laessing, head of the Sahel programme at Germany's Konrad Adenauer Foundation, said in an interview. "The takeover by the Africa Corps means that the Russian military engagement in Mali will continue, but the focus might change more to training and providing equipment and less actual fighting jihadists." REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.