Wife of ex-Pakistan PM Sharif dies in London
September 11, 2018
Following a year-long battle with cancer and several months in a coma, Kulsoom Nawaz passed away on Tuesday at a clinic in London.
The 68-year-old was the wife of Pakistan's former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, whose brother announced the death.
"The wife of Mian Nawaz Sharif is no more among us. May God rest her in peace," Shehbaz Sharif wrote on Twitter.
Sharif's political secretary, Asif Kirmani, also confirmed that Kulsoom Nawaz "has passed away."
The former prime minister and his daughter, Maryam Nawaz, were not with her when she died, as they are currently in jail in Pakistan. Sharif is currently appealing a 10-year prison sentence he was given after being convicted of corruption. His daughter is also appealing a seven-year sentence.
The two left Kulsoom Nawaz's bedside in London to face corruption-related charges in Pakistan. They returned shortly before the country's July 25 elections, which Sharif's party's lost to the country's current Prime Minister Imran Khan.
Khan issued a statement offering his condolences to the family and ordering the Pakistani High Commission in London to "provide the family all the necessary facilities and cooperation."
Kulsoom Nawaz briefly served as a member of parliament after she won her husband's seat in a by-election last year after Sharif was forced to step down by the Supreme Court.
rs/aw (dpa, Reuters)