JEDDAH, 24 April — Italian Consul General Massimo Bernardinelli, 58, died of a heart attack here yesterday.
“Bernardinelli was admitted to the New Jeddah Clinic Hospital where he breathed his last in the afternoon,” a consulate official told Arab News.
Arrangements were being made by the consulate to fly the body back to Italy.
Bernardinelli is survived by his wife and two children — a son and a daughter, both attending the local Italian school. He arrived in Jeddah to assume charge on Oct. 30, eight months after Luigi Maria Vignali ended his term as consul general.
A career diplomat of over 30 years standing, Bernardinelli earlier served his country’s missions in Thailand, Argentina, Canada and Germany. The Italian community expressed its shock over Bernardinelli’s death.
