11:04 | Lima, Mar. 06 (ANDINA).
Peruvian President Ollanta Humala on Tuesday extended his condolences over the death of Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez after a long battle with cancer.
"On behalf of the Peruvian people and on behalf of my family, my wife Nadine, we express our deep sympathy and condolences to the brotherly people of Venezuela." he said in a televised address from the Government Palace.
"We also want to give the family of our friend Hugo Chavez a strong embrace and our Bolivarian, South American and Latin American solidarity, and wish that in such difficult moments, unity and reflection will prevail in such a way that things can go ahead peacefully and along the democratic track," he added.
Chavez, 58, died on Tuesday in a military hospital in Caracas after battling cancer for more than two years. His corpse will lie in state at a Caracas military academy until a formal funeral ceremony on Friday, and seven days of mourning will be observed, officials said.
(END) NDP/EEP
Published: 3/6/2013