Manuel Noriega apologises over military rule of Panama

Associated Press in Panama City
Thursday 25 June 2015 02.28 BST

Manuel Noriega, the former dictator of Panama, has broken a long silence and asked his compatriots to forgive actions by his military regime that culminated in the 1989 US invasion.

Noriega began the brief jailhouse interview with local network Telemetro by reading a handwritten statement in which he said his apology came after days of reflection with his family and members of the church.

He said he was not motivated by any personal interest but a sincere desire to bring closure to the military era, a dark chapter in Panama’s history that left the country in ruin and hundreds dead.

“I want to close the cycle of the military era as the last commander of that group asking for forgiveness,” Noriega said, his hand shaking but otherwise appearing in good health for his 81 years.

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