David Sassoli, European parliament President, dies aged 65

David Sassoli, the president of the European parliament, has died at the age of 65, his spokesman has said.

The 65-year-old Italian had been seriously ill in hospital for more than two weeks due to a dysfunction of his immune system.

“David Sassoli passed away at 1.15am on 11 January in Aviano, Italy, where he was hospitalized,” his spokesman Roberto Cuillo tweeted. “The date and place of the funeral will be communicated in the next few hours.”

The former television newsreader had been in hospital since 26 December due to “a serious complication due to a dysfunction of the immune system”, Cuillo had said on Monday, announcing the cancellation of Sassoli’s official activities.