David Sassoli, president of the European Parliament, died early Tuesday morning. He was 65.

“The @EP_President David Sassoli passed away at 1.15 am on 11 January at the CRO in Aviano (PN), Italy, where he was hospitalized,” his spokesman Roberto Cuillo said in a tweet.

Sassoli was hospitalized on Dec. 26 in Italy, his office said on Monday, because of “a serious complication due to a dysfunction of the immune system.”

In September last year, he was admitted to hospital with pneumonia, and was unable to chair the plenary sessions and attend high-level meetings for weeks.​​​​​​​

Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu offered his condolences to Sassoli’s family and the European Parliament.

“I have learned with great sorrow the passing away of @EP_President David Sassoli. I convey my condolences to his bereaved family and @Europarl_EN. May he rest in peace,” Çavuşoğlu said on Twitter.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen also offered her condolences.

“David Sassoli was a compassionate journalist, an outstanding President of the European Parliament and, first & foremost, a dear friend. My thoughts are with his family,” Von der Leyen said on Twitter.