Simone Veil, the first president of the European Parliament and historic French minister, has died. She was 89 years old.
The French president, Emmanuel Macron, paid homage to her by stating that she was the expression of the "best France", "may her example inspire our compatriots", said the tenant of the Elysée in a tweet, addressing condolences to the family.
Her son Jean Veil announced the death of one of the most important women in Europe: "My mother died this morning at her home".
Fundamental leader of the transalpine center-right, she was a fundamental figure in the history of the Fifth Republic. A survivor of concentration camps, she owes important struggles for women's rights. In 1974, when she was Minister of Health in the government of Valérie Giscard d'Estaing, she presented the draft law on abortion to the National Assembly, which was approved in France the following year. Elected in 1979, she was the first female president of the European Parliament, a position she held until 1982.
