Colin Powell – a life in pictures

Colin Powell, the former US secretary of state, has died from complications from Covid-19 aged 84, it was announced on Monday. Powell, a retired four-star general, was a key figure in the buildup to the invasion of Iraq in 2003 and served as chairman of the joint chiefs of staff in the early 1990s

Main image: The then secretary of state, Colin Powell, in the president's emergency operations centre after the terrorist attacks on 11 September 2001. Photograph: Getty Images

  • Lt Gen Colin Powell, commander of the 5th US corps, salutes while his wife Alma stands to attention during a farewell ceremony in Frankfurt in 1986
    Lt Gen Colin Powell, commander of the 5th US corps, salutes while his wife Alma stands to attention during a farewell ceremony in Frankfurt in 1986

  • Colin Luther Powell, photographed in 1990
    Colin Luther Powell, photographed in 1990

  • Arnold Schwarzenegger and Colin Powell meet at the USO 50th anniversary salute held at Universal Studios Amphitheatre in Los Angeles in 1991
    Arnold Schwarzenegger and Colin Powell meet at the USO 50th anniversary salute held at Universal Studios Amphitheatre in Los Angeles in 1991

  • Powell points to Iraqi airbases at a Pentagon briefing in Washington in 1991
    Powell points to Iraqi airbases at a Pentagon briefing in Washington in 1991

  • Powell addresses an F-117 stealth fighter wing in 1991 at a secret airbase in Saudi Arabia
    Powell addresses an F-117 stealth fighter wing in 1991 at a secret airbase in Saudi Arabia

  • Powell and his wife, Alma, arrive to attend a White House state dinner in honour of the then Hungarian prime minister, József Antall, in 1992
    Powell and his wife Alma arrive to attend a White House state dinner in honour of then Hungarian prime minister József Antall in 1992

  • Powell inspects a guard of honour in London in 1993
    Powell inspects a guard of honour in London in 1993

  • Powell meet Princess Diana with Henry Kissinger during her visit to New York in 1995
    Powell meet Princess Diana with Henry Kissinger during her visit to New York in 1995

  • Powell, acting as an observer, talks to an official at a polling station in Lagos in 1999 during Nigeria’s presidential election
    Powell, acting as an observer, talks to an official at a polling station in Lagos in 1999 during Nigeria’s presidential election

  • Powell with the then Republican presidential candidate and governor of Texas, George W Bush, on stage during their introduction to supporters at the Soldiers and Sailors Memorial Hall and Museum in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania in 2000
    Powell on stage with the then Republican presidential candidate and governor of Texas, George W Bush

  • Powell at an evening session of the Republican national convention in Philadelphia in 2000
    Powell waves as he receives applause during his remarks at an evening session of the Republican national convention in Philadelphia in 2000

  • Powell embracing the Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat as they met for talks in Ramallah in 2001
    Powell embracing the Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat as they met for talks in Ramallah in 2001

  • Powell makes a point as the then British foreign secretary, Robin Cook, looks on during a joint press conference in 2001. Cook began a get-acquainted visit with the new US administration, calling for thorough debate on US plans for a missile shield that drew fierce opposition from Russia and reservations from European leaders
    Powell makes a point as the then British foreign secretary, Robin Cook, looks on during a joint press conference in 2001

  • The then prime minister, Tony Blair, greets Powell outside 10 Downing Street in 2001 before a ceremony to mark three months since the September 11 terrorist attacks
    The then prime minister, Tony Blair, greets Powell outside 10 Downing Street in 2001

  • Powell performs with the then Japanese foreign minister, Makiko Tanaka, during their short skit at a dinner following meetings in Hanoi, Vietnam, in 2001
    Powell performs with the then Japanese foreign minister, Makiko Tanaka, during their short skit at a dinner

  • Powell receives a pat on the cheek from the national security adviser, Condoleezza Rice, in the Oval Office during a meeting between Bush, and the then prime minister of Israel, Ariel Sharon, in 2002
    Powell receives a pat on the cheek from the national security adviser, Condoleezza Rice

  • Powell with a vial that he said was the size that could be used to hold anthrax as he addressed the UN security council in 2003 in New York. Powell urged the UN security council to say ‘enough’ to what he said was Iraq’s 12 years of defiance of international attempts to destroy its chemical and biological weapons
    Powell holding up a vial that he said was the size that could be used to hold anthrax

  • The then UN secretary general, Kofi Annan, speaks with Powell in the UN security council chamber before an address by UN weapons inspector Dr Hans Blix
    Then UN secretary general Kofi Annan speaks with Powell in the UN security council chamber

  • President George W Bush and Powell stop to talk to the press outside a Crawford, Texas restaurant where the two men had lunch in 2003. Bush was spending a month at his Texas ranch that was been billed by the White House as a ‘working vacation’
    President George W Bush and Powell stop to talk to the press outside a Crawford, Texas restaurant

  • Powell listening to a question during a news conference in Beijing, China, in 2004. He urged China to exert its influence over North Korea to resume talks on scrapping its suspected nuclear weapons programme
    Powell listens to a question during a news conference in Beijing, China, in 2004

  • Powell taking a photo of Bush and the first lady, Laura Bush, as they left Bush’s inauguration for a second term on the steps of the US Capitol building in Washington, in 2005
    Powell taking a photo of Bush and the first lady, Laura Bush, with his phone

  • Powell dances on stage with Olu Maintain, left, at the Africa Rising festival at the Royal Albert Hall, London, in 2008
    Powell dances on stage with Olu Maintain, left, at the Africa Rising festival at the Royal Albert Hall, London, in 2008

  • The then US president, Barack Obama, speaks with Powell during a meeting in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington DC in 2010
    Then US president Barack Obama speaks with Powell during a meeting in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington DC in 2010

  • Prince Harry with Powell and Paul Polman, right, the then CEO of Unilever, backstage at the Atlantic Council’s annual awards dinner at the Ritz Carlton hotel in Washington in 2012
    Prince Harry with Powell and Paul Polman, the then CEO of Unilever

  • The then president, Donald Trump, shakes Powell’s hand before delivering remarks at the Ford’s Theatre Society annual gala at in Washington DC in 2019
    The then president, Donald Trump, shakes Powell’s hand before delivering remarks at the Ford’s Theatre Society annual gala at in Washington DC in 2019

  • Powell was the 65th US secretary of state, the first African American to serve in that position
    Powell was the 65th US secretary of state, the first African-American to serve in that position
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