| (Reuters) - Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez died on Tuesday after his battle with cancer, ending the socialist leader's extraordinary 14-year rule of the OPEC nation. Following is a chronology of the his fight against the disease: JUNE 30, 2011 * A pale-looking Chavez addresses the nation by television from Cuba, where he says doctors operated on him twice to remove a cancerous tumor from his pelvis. JULY 4, 2011 * The president makes a surprise return to Venezuela ahead of the country's Independence Day celebrations. JULY 17, 2011 * Chavez returns to Cuba to begin chemotherapy. AUG. 1, 2011 * Chavez appears on TV with his head closely shaved after losing his hair due to the chemotherapy. The hair later grows back. OCT. 20, 2011 * Following tests in Havana, Chavez declares himself free from cancer, and his doctors say he is completely cured. DEC. 2, 2011 * Chavez hosts a regional summit, minus representatives from the United States, in Caracas. DEC. 20, 2011 * Chavez attends a Mercosur summit in Uruguay, his first political trip overseas since his illness was diagnosed. FEB. 21, 2012 * Chavez says he will undergo another operation after a lesion was found in the same area where he had the tumor. FEB. 28, 2012 * The president undergoes surgery in Havana. MARCH 4, 2012 * Chavez says he will undergo radiation treatment in Cuba. APRIL 5, 2012 * Chavez cries during Roman Catholic Mass, calls on God "not to take him yet" because he has more to do for Venezuela. SEPT. 2012 * Often looking bloated and frail, the president limits his re-election campaigning to set-piece events in the nation's main cities, arriving on a truck before addressing large crowds - a far cry from his hands-on style before previous votes. OCT. 7, 2012 * Chavez easily wins re-election in a presidential poll. DEC. 8, 2012 * Chavez says doctors found a recurrence of malignant cells and that he must undergo another operation within days. DEC. 11, 2012 * President undergoes operation of more than six hours. FEB. 15, 2013 * Government publishes four photos of Chavez lying in a hospital bed, says he is breathing through a tracheal tube. FEB. 18, 2013 * Chavez makes pre-dawn return to a Caracas military hospital. MARCH 4, 2013 * Government says Chavez's breathing problems have worsened, and that he is suffering a new, severe respiratory infection. MARCH 5, 2013 * Vice President Nicolas Maduro says Chavez has died. (Compiled by Caracas newsroom; Editing by Kieran Murray and Philip Barbara) |
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