The President of the European Parliament, the Italian David Sassoli, is dead

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Lhe president of the European Parliament, the Italian social democrat David Sassoli, died on the night of Monday to Tuesday in Italy, at the age of 65 years, indicated his spokesman. “David Sassoli died on January 11 at 1:15 am at the CRO (oncology reference center) in Aviano, Italy, where he had been hospitalized” since the end of December, announced on Twitter Roberto Cuillo, the spokesperson by David Sassoli. “The date and place of the funeral will be communicated in the coming hours,” he added.

Monday afternoon, his spokesperson announced the hospitalization of David Sassoli “due to a serious complication due to a dysfunction of the immune system” and the cancellation of his official activities.

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Having suffered from leukemia in the past, David Sassoli had already been hospitalized this fall for pneumonia which had kept him away from Parliament for several weeks. The mandate of this former journalist presenter of television news in Italy, at the head of the assembly since 2019, expired this month, at the half of the quinquennial legislature.

A “good, tenacious man”, “a true democrat”

The election for his succession, to which he had been questioning for a while that he would represent himself, is currently scheduled for January 18. His group, the Social Democrats (S&D), the second political force in the European Parliament, had given up in mid-December to present a candidate, paving the way for the election of the EPP candidate (right), the current first Vice-President of Parliament, the Maltese Roberta Metsola.

Interviewed on the Rai News 24 television channel, Roberto Cuillo paid tribute to “a good, tenacious and combative man”, with “constant attention to the most vulnerable”. “He was a true democrat. He believed in the meeting of different cultures, ”he added. The Italian Minister of Culture, Dario Franceschini (Democratic Party, PD), quickly paid tribute to him on Twitter: “Ciao David, friend of a lifetime”, in a message accompanied by a photo of David Sassoli.

In recent hours, many Internet users, including several political figures in Italy, had shown their support for David Sassoli on social networks, using the hashtag #ForzaDavid (“Courage, David”), in unison with messages of support from heads of European institutions and MEPs.

The French political class pays tribute to him

Many French political figures, on the right and on the left, did not fail to react to the announcement of the death of David Sassoli. Prime Minister Jean Castex hailed on Twitter the memory of “a great European, a humanist, a warm man, of integrity and deeply attached to the values ​​of our Union”. The president of the National Rally and MEP, Jordan Bardella, for his part paid tribute to “a man of dialogue, respectful of the opposition”, while the leader of La France rebellious described “an open and cordial man”.

The mayor of Paris and socialist candidate for the presidential election, Anne Hidalgo, for her part, spoke of her “moved thoughts” and declared on the social network that David Sassoli “will leave a deep imprint in European political life”. Also a presidential candidate, Valérie Pécresse shared her “deep emotion” on learning of the death of the President of the European Parliament, and remembered a man “passionately patriotic and European”.

Emmanuel Macron also reacted to the death of David Sassoli. He regretted the disappearance of “an Italian patriot, a great European and a tireless humanist”.

A mandate undermined by the health crisis

Member of the European Parliament since 2009 without stopping with a failure in the municipal elections in Rome in 2013, David Sassoli was elected President of the European Parliament in July 2019 following negotiations between the major European political forces for the main positions of responsibility in the EU . The right, which had won the presidency of the Commission with Ursula von der Leyen, and the centrist liberals, represented in the Council by Charles Michel, had also voted for him.

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But his mandate, in which he was very involved, was quickly undermined by the health crisis, which forced the European Parliament, the only elected European institution, to work remotely. Out of solidarity in the midst of a pandemic, David Sassoli had made an impression by making the deserted premises of Parliament available, both in Strasbourg and in Brussels, for the preparation of meals for people in need, the installation of a screening or as a refuge for isolated women.

His state of health cast doubt on a candidacy for a second term

MEPs expressed their emotion shortly after the announcement of the death: “I am extremely sad. His work to modernize Parliament from top to bottom was visionary, and I hope we can complete the tasks he had undertaken “to reform the institution, reacted Danish MEP Karen Melchior (Renew, Liberals). ” My heart is broken. Europe has lost a leader, I have lost a friend, democracy has lost a champion, ”said Maltese MEP Roberta Metsola, expected to succeed him.

In a series of messages posted on Twitter, in English and Italian, the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, also praised the memory of what she considered “a dear friend”. “Today is a sad day for Europe. Our union is losing a passionate European, a sincere democrat and a good man […] with strong convictions, ”she wrote in particular.

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Discreet but firm in his conduct of debates in both Strasbourg and Brussels, David Sassoli had received “unanimous support” from his political group in November to run for a second term. But he had not officially declared himself a candidate at the time, and his state of health left some uncertainty about this candidacy. “We are not here to talk about me, I am at the service of my group,” he prudently told S&D MEPs. The group had preferred, in mid-December, to give up presenting a candidate.






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