Egypt’s FM Mourns Journalist Gamal Nkrumah, Son of Ghana’s Founding President

Ahram Online 

Thursday 15 Oct 2026

Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty mourned Al-Ahram Weekly veteran journalist Gamal Nkrumah, son of Ghana’s founding president Kwame Nkrumah, on Thursday following his death in Cairo.

Al-Ahram Weekly veteran journalist Gamal Nkrumah dies in Cairo

Nkrumah worked as a journalist and editor at Al-Ahram Weekly and was the son of the Ghanaian leader and his Egyptian wife, Fathia.

“With deep sorrow, I mourn Mr. Gamal Nkrumah, son of African leader Kwame Nkrumah, named after Gamal Abdel Nasser,” Abdelatty wrote on his official X account.

Nkrumah died on Wednesday, 14 October, after a prolonged illness, according to Ghana’s Graphic Online, which carried a statement from his sister, Samia Nkrumah. The family said he had been receiving care at a rehabilitation centre after suffering a stroke.

The family paid tribute to his commitment to justice, human dignity, African unity and international solidarity, saying his journalism examined the political, social, and cultural forces shaping Africa and the wider world.

It thanked the medical professionals and caregivers who supported him in Cairo, as well as the governments and people of Egypt and Ghana. The family said the memorial arrangements would be announced in due course.

Egypt’s National Press Authority has also mourned veteran journalist Gamal Nkrumah, who spent three decades at Al-Ahram Weekly, covering African and international affairs.

In a statement, the authority said Nkrumah made significant journalistic and intellectual contributions, bringing extensive knowledge to his work and highlighting issues of freedom and people’s independence, with a particular focus on Africa’s history, cultures, and challenges.

The authority noted that Nkrumah embodied a connection between Egypt and Ghana. He was the son of Ghanaian independence leader Kwame Nkrumah and his Egyptian wife, Fathia Nkrumah.

The authority’s chairman and members extended their condolences to Nkrumah’s family, friends, Al-Ahram Establishment, and his colleagues at Al-Ahram Weekly, praying for his soul to rest in peace.

Bibliotheca Alexandrina Director Ahmed Zayed also offered condolences for the death of the veteran journalist.

In a statement, Zayed extended condolences on behalf of himself and the Bibliotheca Alexandrina staff to Samia Nkrumah, a prominent Ghanaian politician and member of the library’s Board of Trustees, who was the deceased’s sister, as well as to Nkrumah’s children and the editorial staff of Al-Ahram Weekly.

“Gamal Nkrumah helped establish Al-Ahram Weekly, one of the Al-Ahram Establishment’s leading English-language publications. Over four decades of journalistic work, he became an expert on African affairs and one of the continent’s leading analysts based in Cairo,” he said in his statement.