One of the West's staunchest allies in Africa, Ethiopia's Prime Minister Meles Zenawi, has died from a mystery illness with no clear successor in line to take power.
Speculation over his health had mounted in recent weeks and the 57-year-old had not appeared in public for the past two months.
His officials, led by Bereket Simon, a close friend of Mr Meles and Ethiopia's communications minister, had denied that he was ill and insisted instead he was "taking a rest" and would be back to work "soon".
But state television announced early on Tuesday that Mr Meles had died in a hospital abroad - believed to be in Brussels - after complications following treatment for an unspecified illness.
He led the continent's second-most populous country for more than 20 years, after marching into its capital at the head of a guerrilla army to oust Marxist dictator Mengistu Haile Mariam in 1991.
He became a "donor darling", whose country was slated to receive £1.3 billion in British aid between 2010 and 2015.
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