Syrian opposition figure Michel Kilo dies of COVID-19

Prominent Syrian dissident Michel Kilo, a writer who was jailed for opposing the country's leadership, had died in France from COVID-19, opposition politicians said on Monday.

Kilo, a Christian in his early eighties from the coastal city of Latakia, was involved in the opposition early on in the 10-year conflict in Syria that spiralled after a crackdown on mass protests against President Bashar al-Assad's rule.

Before his exile, Kilo had tried to operate within the confines of Syria's political system, monopolised by the Baath Party for decades.