Humberto Ortega, Nicaragua's ex-military chief who later turned critic of his brother, dies at 77
Nicaraguan guerrilla fighter Humberto Ortega, a Sandinista defense minister who later in life became a critic of his older brother President Daniel Ortega, has died at age 77
MEXICO CITY (AP) — Nicaraguan guerrilla fighter Humberto Ortega, a Sandinista defense minister who later in life became a critic of his older brother President Daniel Ortega, died Monday at 77, Nicaragua's army said.
The younger Ortega became the head of the Sandinista army and the country’s defense minister after the overthrow of dictator Anastasio Somoza in 1979. Later in life, Humberto Ortega publicly criticized some actions of his brother’s increasingly repressive administrations.
He had been ill and effectively under house arrest for some time. He died Monday at a military hospital, the Nicaraguan military posted on social media.
A cause of death was not provided, but a government statement said he had had a prolonged illness. It also praised his bravery in “revolutionary military actions.”
