Public Figures & Cultural Luminaries

Rafael Barbosa

Guinea-Bissau

1926 – 2007 (81 years old)

Co-founder and first President of the Central Committee of PAIGC who organized urban clandestine resistance in Bissau.

Bissau, Guinea-Bissau

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Military

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Gaston Soumialot

Congo

1922-01-01 – c. 2007 (85 years old)

Fierce revolutionary strategist who commanded the Eastern Front during the 1964 Simba Rebellion, capturing Albertville and collaborating with Che Guevara during the guerrilla campaign in eastern Congo.

Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo

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Literature & Poetry

14

Ahmed Fouad Shennib

أحمد فؤاد شنيب

Libya

1923 – 2007 (84 years old)

Celebrated Libyan romantic poet from Derna and Minister of Education who expanded the national university system and represented Libya at UNESCO.

Derna, Libya

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31

Clay Regazzoni

Gianclaudio Giuseppe Regazzoni

Switzerland

1939 – 2006 (67 years old)

Beloved Swiss Ferrari Formula One driver 'Clay' who won five Grands Prix, helped Scuderia Ferrari win three World Constructors' Championships, scored Williams' first-ever F1 victory, and pioneered motorsport for paraplegics.

Porza (Lugano), Switzerland

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History

Joseph Ki-Zerbo

Burkina Faso

1922-06-21 – 2006-12-04 (84 years old)

One of Africa's most brilliant historians and philosophers who edited Volume I of the UNESCO General History of Africa and formulated the doctrine 'Nan lara an sara' (If we sleep, we die).

Toma, Burkina Faso

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Politics

Hassan Gouled Aptidon

Djibouti

1916-10-15 – 2006-11-21 (90 years old)

First President of the Republic of Djibouti (1977–1999) who led the nation to independence from France and maintained stability as a regional mediator in the Horn of Africa.

Djibouti City, Djibouti

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🕯️ 2,760

Ferenc Puskás

Puskás Ferenc (Purczeld)

Hungary

1 April 1927 – 17 November 2006 (79 years old)

Ferenc Puskás was a prolific Hungarian forward whose thunderous left-foot strikes and captaincy guided the legendary 'Mighty Magyars' through a 31-match unbeaten run, winning Olympic gold in 1952. Defecting after the 1956 Hungarian Revolution, he joined Real Madrid at age thirty-one, scoring 242 goals in 262 games and winning three European Cups.

Budapest, Hungary

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Alphonse Halimi

ألفونس حليمي

Algeria

1932 – 2006 (74 years old)

World Bantamweight Boxing Champion born in Constantine, nicknamed 'La Petite Terreur', who unified the world bantamweight title in Paris in 1957.

Paris (honored in Constantine), France

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Humanitarian & Peace

13

André Mandouze

أندريه ماندوز

France

1916 – 2006 (90 years old)

Eminent Saint Augustine scholar and Dean of the Faculty of Letters in Algiers who courageously exposed colonial torture and stood as an unwavering champion of free Algeria.

Paris / Algiers honors, France

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Resistance & Human Rights

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🕯️ 2,740

Red Auerbach

Arnold Jacob Auerbach

United States

20 September 1917 – 28 October 2006 (89 years old)

Arnold Jacob 'Red' Auerbach was a legendary basketball coach and executive who constructed the Boston Celtics dynasty, winning nine NBA championships as head coach (including eight consecutive from 1959 to 1966) and sixteen total as coach and general manager. Famous for lighting his trademark 'victory cigar' on the bench when a win was assured, he broke major racial barriers in the NBA.

Washington, D.C., United States

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🕯️ 1,290

Anna Politkovskaya

Анна Степановна Политковская

United States

30 August 1958 – 7 October 2006 (48 years old)

Anna Politkovskaya was a celebrated Russian investigative journalist, writer, and human rights defender whose courageous reporting for Novaya Gazeta exposed war crimes, torture, and state-sponsored atrocities during the Second Chechen War. Despite enduring arrests, mock executions, and poisoning attempts, she unmasked authoritarian abuses until she was assassinated in her Moscow apartment building in October 2006.

Moscow, Russia

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Art

Timo Sarpaneva

Timo Tapani Sarpaneva

Finland

1926-10-31 – 2006-10-06 (79 years old)

Visionary Finnish designer and master glassmaker who designed the famous red Iittala 'i' logo, the Claritas art glass collection, Festivo candleholders, and the classic cast-iron pot with teak handle.

Helsinki, Finland

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Politics

Margaret Ekpo

Margaret Sambu

Nigeria

1914-07-27 – 2006-09-21 (92 years old)

Pioneering Nigerian nationalist and women's rights campaigner who organized market women's associations, mobilized for suffrage, and served in the Eastern Region House of Chiefs.

Calabar, Nigeria

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Art

Sven Nykvist

Sven Vilhem Nykvist

Sweden

1922-12-03 – 2006-09-20 (83 years old)

Legendary Swedish cinematographer who won two Academy Awards for Best Cinematography for 'Cries and Whispers' and 'Fanny and Alexander', celebrated as cinema's master of natural light.

Stockholm, Sweden

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Arts & Music

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Fouad El-Mohandes

فؤاد المهندس

Egypt

1924 – 2006 (82 years old)

Revered as 'El-Ostaz' (The Master), he was the towering architect of Egyptian stage comedy in the 20th century, inspiring generations of Arab comedians and hosting the daily radio show Kalemny Shokran.

Cairo, Egypt

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