Former Mauritanian FM dies in Paris

Former Mauritanian Foreign Minister Mohamed Salem Ould Lakhal passed away Thursday in the French capital Paris. Family sources told Arabstoday that the ex-minister's body would be transferred to capital Nouakchott on Saturday morning. Lakhal was born in the town of Etar, north of Nouakchott in 1952. He graduated with a degree in economics from the University of Mohammed V in 1976, before entering politics. Lakhal served as Assistant to Governor of the Central Bank of Mauritania in 1981, before being named Minister of Planning in 1985 and Minister of Finance in 1986. He was Mauritania's foreign minister for four years, between 1986-1990, before the then president, Maaouya Ould Sid'Ahmed Taya, assigned him ambassador to Jordan, Bulgaria and delegates to the European Union. Lakhal's last governmental position was as head of the Mauritanian regulatory authority.