PEKING: Chairman Mao Tsetung, founder and builder of New China and one of the world’s greatest revolutionaries died at 00.10 a.m. today [Sept 9]... . He was 83. … Chairman Mao led successfully the Chinese people through [one of] history’s most arduous struggles spread over three decades until the victory of the Chinese revolution resulting in the establishment of People’s Republic of China on October 1, 1949. He had been suffering from Parkinson’s disease. His condition [had] worsened over the past few months... . ... Immediately following the announcement, which hit Peking like a bombshell, all Chinese flags … were lowered to half-mast. … The news was also … announced on loudspeakers all over the capital... . — News agencies

[As per a related report from Islamabad,] “Mao Tsetung remains immortal. Men like him come once in a century, perhaps once in a millennium,” said Prime Minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto in his tribute to the great Chinese leader. The news of Chairman Mao’s death was broken to the [PM] while he was on a tour of [flood-hit] areas... . His powerful influence left its imprints … on millions. … [the PM said].

Published in Dawn, September 10th, 2026