Brazilian Indigenous leader Chief Raoni diagnosed with cancer

Sept 14 (Reuters) - Brazilian ‌Indigenous Chief ​Raoni ​Metuktire, a prominent defender of Indigenous rights and the Amazon rain ‌forest, has been diagnosed with cancer, the ⁠Chief's non-profit organization Raoni Institute said on Monday.

Chief Raoni, ‌94, was diagnosed with "aggressive ‌cancer" of the digestive system, the Institute said in a statement. He is ​currently in palliative care.

• Chief Raoni has been struggling with his health for ⁠a large part of the year, and the Insitute said ​the first signs of illness began to appear "a few months ago", when ​he was first hospitalized ‌with persistent abdominal pain. Imaging revealed an advanced-stage tumor.

• On June ⁠19 he was transferred to a hospital in Sao Paulo, where he underwent surgery to ⁠treat an intestinal obstruction caused by the tumor.

• Following ​the operation in June, Chief Raoni was placed on palliative care.

• For decades, Chief Raoni has served ‌as a global figure in the Indigenous movement, appearing alongside presidents, ‌popes and even the musician Sting during ⁠campaigns to save ‌the rainforest in ​the 1980s.

(Reporting by André Romani, Writing by Iñigo Alexander, Editing by Kylie ‌Madry)

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