Nouakchott, Oct 15: Mauritania's first President Moktar Ould Daddah, who was the African desert nation's first president following independence from France in 1960, has died in Paris, his brother told reporters today. Ould Daddah, 79, died last night in the French capital's Val De Grace Hospital, where he had been undergoing treatment for a long illness, his brother Ahmed Ould Daddah said.
Born on December 25, 1924, Ould Daddah became the first president of Mauritania in August 1961, nine months after the country gained independence from France.
He ruled the country for 17 years until he was ousted in a coup in July 1978. Following his ouster, Ould Daddah lived in exile in France, only returning to Mauritania in July 2001.
Bureau Report