Death of German philosopher Jürgen Habermas at the age of 96

German philosopher Jürgen Habermas passed away at the age of 96 on Saturday in Starnberg, southern Germany, as confirmed by a spokesperson for his publisher, Suhrkamp Verlag, citing family sources.

A prominent intellectual figure in post-war Germany, Habermas shaped major debates in Germany and across Europe, advocating for a federal European project to counter the rise of nationalism.

Throughout his life, he interwove philosophy and politics, at times serving as the voice of student protest in the 1960s and, at other times, critiquing the excesses of the marketplace during the German reunification in 1989.

Born on June 18, 1929, in Düsseldorf, he was briefly involved with the Hitler Youth and was profoundly affected by the collapse of Nazism.