Romodan Mohammed Nur was an Eritrean politician who was the first chairman of the Eritrean People's Liberation Front and a key figure during the Eritrean War of Independence.

Romodan Mohammed Nur
Leader of the Eritrean People's Liberation Front
In office
1977–1987
Preceded byPosition established
Succeeded byIsaias Afwerki
Personal details
Born(1938-08-08)August 8, 1938
Hargigo, Italian East Africa
Died30 December 2021(2021-12-30) (aged 83)
Khartoum, Sudan
Political partyEritrean People's Liberation Front

Early and personal life edit

Romodan was born in Hirghigo in 1938 to a Tigre speaking merchant family. He attended Kekiya School, and in 1957 went to Cairo for secondary school.[1]

Rebel fighter edit

In 1961 he joined the ELF, and in 1963 Romodan went to receive military training in Syria. He rose to become political commissar of Zone 4 in 1965, and was one of the original group of five sent for training in China in 1967. In 1970, Romodan was among the founders of the People's Liberation Forces (PLF) at Sudoha Ila, and in 1971 he was elected to lead the PLF, after which he developed close links to the Ala group led by his colleague, Isaias. Together with Isaias and others, Romodan created the nucleus of what was to become the EPLF within the Eritrean Liberation Forces – People's Liberation Forces (ELF-PLF). At the EPLF's First Congress in 1977, he was elected secretary general – a position he held until 1987, when he became vice secretary-general, with Isaias's assumption of public leadership.[1]

Later life edit

In 1994, Romodan suddenly resigned as vice secretary general of the EPLF possibly due to pressure from Isaias Afwerki. He then lived a quiet civilian life and died in Khartoum on December 30, 2021.[1]

References edit

  1. ^ a b c "Romodan Mohammed Nur – Eritrean freedom fighter (1941 – 2021)".