US ex-President Jimmy Carter’s wife Rosalynn dies aged 96

Nov 19 (BBC/GNA) – The former US First Lady Rosalynn Carter, the wife of ex-President Jimmy Carter, has died at the age of 96.

The Carter Center confirmed in a statement that she died peacefully with her family by her side.

On Friday, it was reported that she had entered a hospice care home in the state of Georgia, and was spending time with her 99-year-old husband, who has been in hospice care since February.

Mrs Carter was diagnosed with dementia in May.

The longest-married first couple marked their 77th wedding anniversary in July.

Mrs Carter was born Eleanor Rosalynn Smith on 18 August,1927.

She married President Carter on 7 July, 1946, and they went on to have four children.

When her husband began his political career in the 60s – first as Georgia state senator, governor, and later president – Mrs Carter was focused on raising mental health awareness and reducing the stigma attached to people with mental illnesses.

GNA/Credit: BBC