Public Figures & Cultural Luminaries

Mohamed Brahmi

محمد براهمي

Tunisia

1955 – 2013 (58 years old)

Founder of the People's Movement and member of Tunisia's National Constituent Assembly, assassinated on Republic Day 2013 for his outspoken defense of national sovereignty and secular democracy.

Tunis, Tunisia

16 Full Record →

Arts & Music

13

Mohamed Chebaa

محمد شبعة

Morocco

1935 – 2013 (78 years old)

Pioneering Moroccan modernist painter, graphic designer, and educator whose integration of architecture, Arabic typography, and carved wood sculpture defined the Casablanca School.

Casablanca, Morocco

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28

Djalma Santos

Djalma Pereira Dias dos Santos

Brazil

1929 – 2013 (84 years old)

Two-time FIFA World Cup champion (1958, 1962) and legendary Brazilian right-back who played in four consecutive World Cups and was selected to the FIFA World Cup All-Star Team three times.

Uberaba (Minas Gerais), Brazil

28 Full Record →

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🕯️ 1,880

Emile Griffith

Emile Alphonse Griffith

United States

3 February 1938 – 23 July 2013 (75 years old)

Emile Griffith was a brilliant US Virgin Islands-born boxer who captured world championships in both the welterweight and middleweight divisions, fighting an astonishing 339 championship rounds—more than any other boxer in history. A gentle and compassionate man who carried the psychological burden of his tragic 1962 televised bout with Benny Paret, he was an early barrier-breaker for LGBTQ+ visibility in professional sports.

Hempstead, New York, United States

36 Full Record →

Literature & Poetry

16

Henri Alleg

هنري عاليغ

Great Britain

1921 – 2013 (91 years old)

Algerian journalist, editor of the iconic daily 'Alger Républicain', whose harrowing 1958 book 'The Question'—smuggled out of prison—exposed the systematic torture practiced by French forces in Algeria.

Paris, France

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Art

Alex Colville

Canada

24 August 1920 – 16 July 2013 (92 years old)

Iconic Canadian magic realist painter whose iconic compositions Horse and Train, To Prince Edward Island, and 1967 Centennial coins defined Canadian visual culture.

Wolfville, Canada

1 Full Record →

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🕯️ 2,740

Alain Mimoun

Ali Mimoun Ould Kacha

Algeria

1 January 1921 – 27 June 2013 (92 years old)

Alain Mimoun was a beloved French distance runner and decorated World War II hero who, after winning three Olympic silver medals behind his great friend and rival Emil Zátopek, achieved glorious redemption at age thirty-five by winning the Olympic Marathon at the 1956 Melbourne Games in scorching 100-degree heat. Winner of 29 French national titles, he remains France's most decorated track athlete.

Saint-Mandé, Val-de-Marne, France

35 Full Record →

Arts & Music

9

Cheb Akil

الشاب عقيل

Algeria

1974 – 2013 (38 years old)

Beloved romantic Rai singer and composer known for his warm velvet voice, polished arrangements, and timeless pan-Arab anthems such as Mazal Mazal.

Tipaza, Algeria

9 Full Record →

Politics

Ally Sykes

Ally Kleist Sykes

Tanzania

1926-09-10 – 2013-05-19 (86 years old)

Founding nationalist father who signed the founding charter of TANU in 1954, pioneering jazz musician who led the Coast Social Orchestra, and diplomat.

Dar es Salaam, Tanzania

1 Full Record →

Literature & Poetry

3

Yamina Mechakra

يمينة مشاطرة

Algeria

1949 – 2013 (64 years old)

Celebrated novelist and child psychiatrist whose 1979 masterwork 'La Grotte éclatée', prefaced by Kateb Yacine, is one of the most powerful poetic novels of the War of Independence.

Algiers, Algeria

3 Full Record →

Politics

Elijah Harper

Canada

1949 – 2013 (63 years old)

Cree leader and Manitoba legislator who achieved historic national acclaim in 1990 by clutching a sacred eagle feather and refusing unanimous procedural consent, effectively sinking the Meech Lake Constitutional Accord.

Red Sucker Lake (Manitoba), Canada

1 Full Record →

Arts & Music

4

Mohamed Benbrahim

محمد بنبراهيم

Morocco

1949 – 2013 (64 years old)

Brilliant Moroccan character actor whose spontaneous improvisation, gravelly voice, and unforgettable presence enriched landmark films like Casanegra and Kharboucha.

Meknes, Morocco

4 Full Record →

Science

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Christian de Duve

Christian René Marie Joseph de Duve

Great Britain

1917 – 2013 (95 years old)

Belgian cytologist and biochemist who shared the 1974 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine with Albert Claude and George Palade for discovering lysosomes and peroxisomes, revolutionizing cell biology.

Grez-Doiceau (Walloon Brabant), Belgium

0 Full Record →

Science

François Jacob

France

1920 – 2013 (92 years old)

Hero of the Free French in WWII, Companion of the Liberation, and geneticist who shared the 1965 Nobel Prize in Medicine for discovering messenger RNA and the operon mechanism with Jacques Monod and André Lwoff.

Paris, France

1 Full Record →

Music

Statesmanship & Statesmen

Bi Kidude

Fatuma binti Baraka

Tanzania

1910-01-01 – 2013-04-17 (103 years old)

Centenarian musical matriarch and WOMAD award winner who preserved the ancient Unyago drumming rituals, performed barefoot worldwide, and reigned as Queen of Taarab.

Zanzibar City, Tanzania

1 Full Record →

18

Ali Kafi

علي كافي

Algeria

1928 – 2013 (84 years old)

ALN Colonel who commanded Wilaya II (Constantinois) following the death of Zighoud Youcef, later serving as President of the High Council of State from 1992 to 1994.

Algiers, Algeria

18 Full Record →

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