Former French president Jacques Chirac passes away

• Chirac had served the country from 1995 to 2007

• In December 2011, Chirac was handed a two-year suspended sentence on corruption charges

(Karachi) Former French president Jacques Chirac has died at the age of 86, his family confirmed on Thursday.

“President Jacques Chirac died this morning surrounded by his family, peacefully,” his son-in-law told AFP.

The French National Assembly also observed a minute’s silence over his tragic demise.

The president of the European Commission and former Luxembourg premier Jean-Claude Juncker has said he was “moved and devastated” to learn the news.

Chirac, a centre-right-politician, had served the country from 1995 to 2007. Chirac became the president in May 1995 and left the office in 2007 after serving two terms. Prior to that, he had two stints as the prime minister of France from 1974 to 1976 and 1986 to 1988. He also served as the mayor of Paris from 1977 to 1995.

The latter part of his career was ruined by corruption allegations. In December 2011, Chirac was handed a two-year suspended sentence on charges of breach of trust, misappropriation of public funds and illegal use of influence while serving as mayor of Paris.