Stay up to date with notifications from The Independent

Notifications can be managed in browser preferences.

Kohl's wife commits suicide after illness

Imre Karacs
Thursday 05 July 2001 19:00 EDT
Comments

Your support helps us to tell the story

From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.

At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.

The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.

Your support makes all the difference.

The politica; tribulations of Germany's disgraced former chancellor, Helmut Kohl, turned to tragedy when his wife was discovered dead in the family home yesterday morning.

Hannelore Kohl, 68, had taken her own life because she could no longer endure the suffering brought on by a rare skin disease, Mr Kohl's office stated.

Mr Kohl was informed of his wife's suicide in southern Germany, as he was attending Parliament in Berlin.

Mrs Kohl killed herself on the night her husband won an important court victory, stopping the publication of potentially damaging files assembled by the former East German secret police – the Stasi. They were married for 41 years; she was known in her own right for her cookery books, and was widely admired for her charity work. In the last 15 months she had been compelled by her illness to live in the dark.

Join our commenting forum

Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies

Comments

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in