He died on Tuesday July 24 in the capital, Accra soon after falling ill. Ghana's President, John Atta Mills died yesterday July 24 after falling ill, a statement from his office announced. The BBC quoted the statement as saying the 68-year-old died a few hours after being taken ill, though no details of the circumstances of the death were given. He reportedly died in a hospital in the capital, Accra.

The statement read in part: "It is with a heavy heart...that we announce the sudden and untimely death of the President of the Republic of Ghana." Al Jazeera Television quoted a presidential aide who asked not to be named as saying President Mills had complained of pains on Monday evening and died early yesterday afternoon when his condition worsened. According to the BBC, Atta Mills had been suffering from throat cancer. Last month, Mills visited the United States for what he described as a routine medical checkup. Prior to his trip, he had quashed rumours of his death.

Atta Mills became President of Ghana in 2009 after losing elections for the position twice. He previously served as Vice President to Jerry Rawlings between 1997 and January 2001. Born on July 21, 1944 at Tarkwa in western Ghana, "The Prof", as Mr Atta Mills was known, pursued a long academic career. He graduated in law at the University of Ghana in 1967 before pursuing his legal studies at the School of Oriental and African Studies in London.

He then won a Fulbright scholarship at Stanford Law School in the US. He later returned to his alma mater, the University of Ghana, where he taught for nearly 25 years. He was National Tax Commissioner under President Rawlings before being promoted Vice President. He was married to Ernestina Naadu Mills, a Director of Education and trained marriage counsellor.