Former US secretary of state Colin Powell dies of Covid complications at 84

Colin Powell, the first Black person to become America’s Secretary of State, has died at 84, from Covid-related complications.

He was double vaccinated but immunosuppressed due to blood cancer.

Powell served as a distinguished general in the US army before taking up his diplomatic role. He was key in the run-up to the fateful Iraq invasion of 2003, and will perhaps always be remembered for his speech to the UN trying to persuade the international community to remove Saddam Hussein.

There have been tributes from both sides of the Atlantic tonight.