Spanish Court Refuses to Hand over Angolan Ex-president's Body

A Spanish court refused, on Friday, to release the body of Angola’s former President José Eduardo dos Santos to his family.

A top court in Catalona ordered more tests after his daughter claimed foul play. The court said in a statement it "does not agree to make the body of Mr dos Santos, the ex-president of Angola, available to the family."

"Although the preliminary autopsy report says his death was natural, the magistrate has agreed to additional tests, since there was a complaint made about threats to the inpidual," it added.

The former President, who ruled Africa’s second-biggest oil producer for nearly four decades, passed away aged 79 on July 8. He died at 11.10 am Spanish time at the Barcelona Teknon clinic following a prolonged illness, according to the presidency’s statement.

The announcement said dos Santos was “a statesman of great historical scale who governed … the Angolan nation through very difficult times.”

A spokesperson for the clinic declined to comment. Dos Santos, who ruled Angola for almost 40 years from 1979, had been receiving medical treatment since 2019.

Meanwhile, the state’s current head of state, João Lourenço, announced five days of national mourning starting on Friday, when the country’s flag will fly at half-staff and public events will be canceled.

The former president, one of Africa’s longest-serving leaders, stepped down five years ago. His era was marked by a brutal civil war lasting nearly three decades against the US-backed Unita rebels – which he won in 2002 – and a subsequent oil-fuelled boom.