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29 March 2024

Former Panama dictator Manuel Noriega dies at 83

Manuel Antonio Noriega (AP)

Published
By AP

Former Panamanian dictator Manuel Noriega, a onetime U.S. ally who was ousted as Panama's dictator by an American invasion in 1989, died late Monday at age 83.

Panamanian President Juan Carlos Varela wrote in his Twitter account that "the death of Manuel A. Noriega closes a chapter in our history."

Varela added, "His daughters and his relatives deserve to mourn in peace."

Noriega ruled with an iron fist, ordering the deaths of those who opposed him and maintaining a murky, close and conflictive relationship with the United States.

At the apex of his power he wielded great influence outside the country as well thanks to longstanding relationships with spy agencies around the world, said R.M. Koster, an American novelist and biographer of Noriega who has lived in Panama for decades.