Atlanta-based CNN is reporting that Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez has died.
Vice President Nicolas Maduro announced Tuesday, in a national broadcast, at 4:25 p.m. that Chavez died. The President succumbed to cancer. He was 58-years old.
Ynet news reports Chavez had undergone four operations in Cuba for a cancer that was first detected in his pelvic region in mid-2011. His last surgery was on Dec. 11 and he had not been seen in public since. Chavez never revealed the exact type of cancer he had.
Maduro said, "We must unite now more than ever," he said, calling on Venezuelans to remain peaceful and respectful.
Maduro said he would soon announce plans for Chavez's funeral. However, he did not say when elections would be held.
"Our people can count on having a government of men and women committed to protecting them," Maduro said.
The announcement came hours after Maduro met with the country's top political and military leaders about Chavez's worsening health condition and suggested someone may have deliberately infected Chavez with cancer.
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