Alex Salmond, historical leader of Scottish independence, dies

Scotland's former Chief Minister Alex Salmond, who led a bid for independence from the United Kingdom in the 2014 referendum, died suddenly at the age of 69. The Scottish National Party (SNP) announced the death of its former leader on X.

Salmond, a key figure for Scottish independence, led the Scottish government between 2007 and 2014. He will be remembered for promoting the fight for total secession from the United Kingdom. In fact, he managed to agree with the then British premier, David Cameron, to hold a referendum for independence.

This cost the Scottish leader dearly and he resigned after 55% of the participants in his referendum voted against the separation.

Reactions from the British authorities

After learning of Salmond’s passing, numerous British leaders shared the news and paid tribute to the former leader. Current First Minister Keir Starmer from the Labout Party described Salmond as "a monumental figure in Scottish and British politics," a d stated that "he leaves behind him a lasting legacy.”

The current SNP leader and chief minister of Scotland stressed that "Alex worked tirelessly and fought fearlessly for the country that he loved and for her Independence. He took the Scottish National Party from the fringes of Scottish politics into Government and led Scotland so close to becoming an Independent country."

Also bidding him farewell was Humza Yousaf, another former SNP chief minister of Scotland: "Alex and I obviously had our differences in recent years, but there is no doubt that he made a huge contribution to Scottish and British politics. My condolences to his family and friends," he posted on X.