United States Army General Colin Powell, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff in 1989 photo (Credit: Wikipedia / US Army photographer Russell F. Roederer)

By Gary Raynaldo    DIPLOMATIC TIMES

Colin Powell, who made history as the first Black U.S. secretary of state, has died of COVID-19 complications. He was 84. Powell was being treated for blood cancer.  Powell  had a sterling military career and later served as a diplomat. He is described as a trailblazer. But Powell’s reputation was  tarnished near the end of his career when he went before the United Nations in 2003 to make the U.S. case for war on Iraq by presenting evidence of Iraqi weapons of mass destruction, which never existed.   “There can be no doubt that Saddam Hussein has biological weapons and the capability to rapidly produce more,”  Powell said confidently at the time before the UN Security Council,  adding that the Iraqi leader was also working to acquire nuclear components.    Powell would come to regret helping launch a war on such faulty evidence.  Powell recalled his testimony as a painful “blot” on his record.  Powell maintained that a lot of sources cited by the intelligence community were wrong. The U.S.-led invasion on Iraq was a disaster that led to horrific death and violence in Iraq.   Powell oversaw the Gulf war while serving as chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.    Powell was the first Black chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.  As chairman, Powell also presided over the U.S. invasions of Panama in 1989 and Somalia in 1992, as well as dozens of other U.S. military operations overseas.   Although he was fully vaccinated, his family said in a statement that he died of complications from COVID-19.  “We have lost a remarkable and loving husband, father, grandfather and a great American,” Powell’s family said in a statement.

Defense Secretary Austin Says World Lost One of Its Greatest Leaders in Powell

Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III briefs the press from the Pentagon Briefing Room, Washington, D.C., Feb. 19, 2021. (DoD Photo by U.S. Air Force Staff Sgt. Jack Sanders).

U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin is also a trailblazer, becoming the first Black person to head to Pentagon.  Austin gave a statement on the death of Powell.

“The world lost one of the greatest leaders that we have ever witnessed. Alma lost a great husband, and the family lost a tremendous father. And I lost a tremendous personal friend and mentor. He has been my mentor for a number of years. He always made time for me and I could always go to him with tough issues. He always had great counsel. We will certainly miss him. I feel as if I have a hole in my heart, just learning of this recently.  He was the first African-American chairman of the Joint Chiefs, first African-American Secretary of State and a man who was respected around the globe. Quite frankly, it is not possible to replace a Colin Powell. We will miss him.”

-U.S. Defense Secretary Austin

Powell was born in New York City in 1937 and was raised in the South Bronx. His parents, Luther and Maud Powell, immigrated to the United States from Jamaica. He was educated in the New York City public schools, graduating from the City College of New York (CCNY), where he earned a bachelor’s degree in geology.

Colin Powell and  General Norman Schwarzkopf, in discussion 1991. (Wikipedia)

General Colin Powell inspecting U.S. Troops deployed in Saudi Arabia as part of Operations Desert Storm.

He also participated in ROTC at CCNY and received a commission as an Army second lieutenant upon graduation in June 1958. He was a professional soldier for 35 years, during which time he held many command and staff positions and rose to the rank of four-star general. He was Commander of the U.S. Army Forces Command in 1989.