Iko Carreira, Date of Birth, Place of Birth, Date of Death

Iko Carreira

Angolan politician

Date of Birth: 03-Jun-1933

Place of Birth: Luanda, Luanda Province, Angola

Date of Death: 01-Jan-2000

Profession: politician, military officer, diplomat

Nationality: Angola

Zodiac Sign: Gemini

General Henrique Teles Carreira (1933–2000), best known by the nickname Iko Carreira, served as the first Defense Minister of Angola from 1975 to 1980 during the civil war.
After the death of Agostinho Neto his position in the party weakened.
He later served as ambassador to Algeria and military attaché to Spain.He was born to White Portuguese ranchers in Angola.
After getting radicalized at University, he joined the Independence Movement in 1957 and went underground in 1964, moving to Zambia and Algeria to receive training from Soviet trainers.
He was an officer in the People's Movement for the Liberation of Angola (MPLA), Agostinho Neto's armed wing fighting against Portuguese colonial rule.
Founder and commander in chief of the Angolan Armed Forces, he defeated the FNLA in the north and UNITA in the south during the first civil war.
As Secretary of Defense, he thwarted an attempt at a coup led by Nito Alves.
Considered to be the regime's second in command until Neto's death, he was the first African military officer to receive a degree as a general from the Soviet Union 's (Academia de Estado- Maior).General Iko Carreira's last struggle was to combat his illness, a stroke that paralysed his entire left side for the last 13 years of his life, writing two novels with one finger, on a special computer.
The novels are titled: "O Pensamento Estrategico de Agostinho Neto", Publicacoes Dom Quixote, and "Memorias" published in Angola by Nzila.