Prominent intellectual Tony Judt, one of the most respected historians of European history, has died at his home in New York City.
Judt, who wrote "Postwar: A History of Europe Since 1945," was 62.
His death on August 6 was announced by New York University, where the British scholar had taught for many years. The cause was complications of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, which attacks nerve cells and eventually paralyzes the victim.
But his thinking remained unimpaired and he continued writing, including personal essays for "The New York Review of Books," through 2010.
The son of Marxist Jews, Judt was a left-wing Zionist in his youth who went on to criticize left-wing ideology and once described Israel as a "belligerently intolerant, faith-driven ethno-state."
He is survived by his wife Jennifer Homans, a dance critic, and two sons.
with material from agency reports