Deutsche WellePoliticsUnited States of AmericaUS: Senator Lindsey Graham diesShakeel Sobhan Reuters, AP | Wesley DockeryJuly 12, 2026
The South Carolina politician and staunch ally of Donald Trump died aged 71 after a brief and sudden illness, his office said. The hawkish senator backed the 2003 invasion of Iraq and the more recent war with Iran.
US Senator Lindsey Graham passed away on Saturday evening after a brief and sudden illness, his office announced in a statement on X.
The veteran Republican lawmaker from South Carolina was 71 years old.
Graham had just returned from a trip to Ukraine prior to his death.
Who was Lindsey Graham?
Early in his career, Graham was a lawyer for the US Air Force, according to the bio on his website. He was stationed at the Rhein-Main Air Force Base in Germany between 1984 and 1988.
During the Gulf War, as a Staff Judge Advocate, he prepared service members for deployment.
He was elected to the US House of Representatives from South Carolina's third congressional district in 1994.
In 2002, Graham was elected to the US Senate and re-elected in 2008, 2014 and 2020.
A key ally of Israel and Ukraine in the Senate
In his early career, Graham was a staunch supporter of the US invasion of Iraq in 2003 during the presidency of George W. Bush.
Later on, Graham had expressed opposition to then-Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump in 2015, calling Trump a "race-baiting, xenophobic, religious bigot." Graham later U-turned and became one of Trump's closest allies in the Senate when Trump became president in his first term from 2017 to 2021.
Graham is one of the most ardent backers of Israel in the Senate and is also an ally of Ukraine. He also pushed for the current US military operations against Iran.
How has the world reacted to Graham's death?
Trump hailed Graham as "one of the greatest people and senators I have ever known" and a "true American patriot."
Israeli Minister of Defense Israel Katz called Graham "a true friend of the State of Israel and one of its strongest and most steadfast supporters."
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