Former Dutch Prime Minister Dries van Agt and his wife, Eugenie, died Monday while holding hands in a double euthanasia.
Both 93-year-olds died “hand in hand” in Agt’s hometown of Nijmegen, The Rights Forum, a nonprofit organization founded by the former Netherlands prime minister, announced Friday, according to the New York Post.
“He died together and hand in hand with his beloved wife Eugenie van Agt-Krekelberg, the support and support with whom he was together for more than seventy years, and whom he always continued to refer to as ‘my girl,'” The Rights Forum said in a statement.
Oud-premier Dries van Agt is op 93-jarige leeftijd overleden. In 2015 sprak Jeroen Pauw uitgebreid met hem in Het Laatste Woord. Afspraak daarbij was dat het interview pas zou worden uitgezonden na zijn overlijden. Vanavond om 23.10 te zien op NPO 2 pic.twitter.com/3MknUneVIY
— Omroep NTR (@omroepntr) February 9, 2024
Agt and his wife both suffered from health problems before they decided to die together, the outlet reported. Agt has never fully recovered from a brain hemorrhage he had while delivering a speech at a commemoration event for Palestinians in 2019. (RELATED: Former Irish PM John Bruton, Who Was ‘Very Significant’ In Northern Irish Peace Talks, Dies)
The couple “couldn’t live without each other,” Gerad Jonkman, director of The Rights Forum, told broadcaster NOS regarding their decision to die together via duo euthanasia.
Duo euthanasia is when two people receive a fatal injection at the same time, according to the outlet. The procedure is still rare in the Netherlands, although it is slowly being popularized.
Agt was the Netherlands’ prime minister from 1977 to 1982, according to the outlet. He founded The Rights Forum, which promotes “just and sustainable Dutch and European policy regarding the Palestine/Israel issue” in 2009.