Ariel Sharon Dead at 85

Former Israeli prime minister Ariel Sharon, who suffered a stroke while in office and fell into an irreversible coma in 2006, died on Saturday at the age of 85. Sharon’s vital organs had reportedly been deteriorating over the past few days and his family had gathered by his bedside at Tel Hashomer hospital outside of Tel Aviv. Sharon is remembered as an iconic general who fought in three wars before being elected prime minister in 2001. He stirred controversy in 2006 by expelling Jewish settlers from 21 Gaza settlements, resigning as head of the Likud party and forming a new, centrist one called Kadima.