Tanzanian President Samia's husband dies in hospital

Hafidh Ameir Hassan, the husband of Tanzania's President Samia Suluhu Hassan, has died while undergoing treatment at a hospital in Zanzibar. Vice-President Deogratius Ndejembi, who announced the death, said Ameir had been suffering from a heart condition.

Ndejembi said Ameir passed away at 08:00 local time on Monday at the Emilio Mzena Memorial Hospital. Funeral preparations are already under way in Kizimkazi, a village on Zanzibar, Tanzania's semi-autonomous island territory.

Ameir worked as an agricultural academic and generally kept away from public attention. He became Tanzania's first-ever First Gentleman after Samia assumed the presidency in 2021, but was rarely seen alongside her, appearing only occasionally at official events.

The vice-president extended condolences to President Samia and to Ameir's family and friends. Kenyan President William Ruto also paid tribute, writing on social media that Samia had lost a lifelong companion, her children a beloved father, and Tanzania a distinguished son. Zambian President Hakainde Hichilema likewise offered condolences, expressing solidarity with the first family and the whole of Tanzania during this difficult period.

Samia and Ameir married in 1978, before she entered national politics. They had four children together — three sons and a daughter. Their daughter, Wanu Hafidh Ameir, is herself a politician, currently serving in Zanzibar's House of Representatives within the National Assembly.