Former Peruvian President Alberto Fujimori Dies at 86

Former President of Peru Alberto Fujimori (1990-2000) passed away this Wednesday at the age of 86 due to cancer, just hours after his personal physician, Alejandro Aguinaga, reported that he was "fighting for his life."

"After a long battle with cancer, our father, Alberto Fujimori, has just departed to meet the Lord. We ask those who appreciated him to join us in a prayer for the eternal rest of his soul. Thank you for everything, Dad! Keiko, Hiro, Sachie, and Kenji Fujimori," his daughter Keiko Fujimori posted on her social media account on X.

The former president, aged 86, was diagnosed with tongue cancer over 27 years ago and had since suffered from recurring health issues. Before his passing, family members and several congressmen and former legislators had already gathered at Keiko Fujimori's residence—where he was spending his final days—alongside Aguinaga.

Fujimori won the Peruvian presidential elections in 1989 and just three years later, in collaboration with the Armed Forces, staged a coup that abolished the Constitution, closed Congress, and intervened in the Palace of Justice. His ten-year mandate was marred by several massacres, including those of Barrios Altos and La Cantuta—which led to his imprisonment—as well as forced sterilizations of thousands of men and women, mostly indigenous.

Fujimori was sentenced to 25 years in prison specifically for the Barrios Altos and La Cantuta massacres, but in December 2023 he received a humanitarian pardon despite objections from the Inter-American justice system. In mid-July, he was designated as a presidential candidate for the 2026 elections by the Popular Force party, founded by his daughter Keiko, who has unsuccessfully run for the Peruvian presidency on multiple occasions.