Former Pakistani President General (Retd) Pervez Musharraf passed away in a hospital in Dubai on Sunday. He was 79.
Musharraf was suffering from amyloidosis, a rare disease caused by a build-up of an abnormal protein called amyloid in organs and tissues throughout the body, The Express Tribune reported.
Geo News reported Musharraf was undergoing treatment at American Hospital Dubai.
Musharraf was born on August 11, 1943 in Delhi. He assumed the post of Chief Executive after imposing martial law in Pakistan in 1999 and served as the President of Pakistan from 2001 to 2008.
Musharraf's family moved from New Delhi to Karachi in 1947. He joined the Pakistan Army in 1964 and was a graduate of the Army Staff and Command College, Quetta.
After stepping down as President, Musharraf went into exile in 2008 and stayed in Dubai for years. He returned to Pakistan in 2013 but then left the country again. His health condition has critical since at least June 2022.
Musharraf lived in self-imposed exile in the UAE to avoid criminal charges against him in Pakistan.
In a statement issued immediately after Musharraf's death, the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), the media wing of the Pakistan military, said that Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee General Sahir Shamshad and all the services chiefs express their heartfelt condolences.
"May Allah bless the departed soul and give strength to the bereaved family,” it said.
Geo TV reported that a special flight will be sent to Dubai on Monday to bring Musharraf’s body back to Pakistan for burial.
(With PTI inputs)
