Sirhan Sirhan
The Kennedy assassin’s parole application approved
Sirhan Sirhan (center) immediately after his assassination attempt on Robert F. Kennedy.
© imago / United Archives International
After 53 years in prison for the murder of Robert F. Kennedy, the perpetrator Sirhan Sirhan can have hopes of his release.
Sirhan Sirhan, the man who murdered US politician Robert F. Kennedy in 1968, could soon be released after 53 years in prison. As reported in the US media including the channel CNN, he was now successful with his 16th petition for clemency. Also because with Douglas Kennedy and Robert Kennedy Jr., of all things, Robert F. Kennedy’s two sons had campaigned for it.
Both have now forgiven the now 77-year-old and are impressed by his change. Other members of the Kennedy family are said to have spoken out in a letter against a release, it is said. Despite the decision of the responsible commission to approve the parole, it is not yet certain that Sirhan Sirhan will actually be released. According to CNN, the governor of California, Gavin Newsom (53), could reverse the decision.
Murdered on the day of his greatest triumph
On June 5, 1968, Robert F. Kennedy, the brother of US President John F. Kennedy, who had been assassinated five years earlier, celebrated the greatest success of his career as a politician. But immediately after winning the Democratic Party’s presidential election in California, the then 24-year-old Palestinian shot him, and Kennedy was hit by three bullets. One day after the attack, he succumbed to his injuries. Sirhan Sirhan was initially sentenced to death, later the sentence was reduced to life imprisonment.