Former Thai PM Sundaravej dies

BANGKOK: Samak Sundaravej, a firebrand right-wing politician and TV cooking show host who briefly served as Thailand's prime minister and considered himself a proxy of ousted leader Thaksin Shinawatra, died after a long battle with liver cancer yesterday. He was 74.

Samak had sought treatment for the cancer late last year in the United States and kept a low-profile after returning to Thailand.

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