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PHOTOS: The life of Colin Powell

Colin Powell, who served Democratic and Republican presidents in war and peace but whose sterling reputation was forever stained when he went before the U.N. and made faulty claims to justify the U.S. war in Iraq, died Monday of COVID-19 complications. He was 84.

A veteran of the Vietnam War, Powell rose to the rank of four-star general and in 1989 became the first Black chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. In that role he oversaw the U.S. invasion of Panama and later the U.S. invasion of Kuwait to oust the Iraqi army in 1991. But his legacy was marred when, in 2003, he went before the U.N. Security Council as secretary of state and made the case for U.S. war against Iraq at a moment of great international skepticism.

See images from throughout Powell’s life below.

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U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell points to a reporter during a news conference outside of the United Nations Security Council Chambers, Friday, March 7, 2003. Colin Powell, former Joint Chiefs chairman and secretary of state, has died from COVID-19 complications. In an announcement on social media Monday, Oct. 18, 2021, the family said Powell had been fully vaccinated. (AP Photo/Ed Betz, file)

2/23

In this Feb. 5, 2003 file photo, Secretary of State Colin Powell holds up a vial he said could contain anthrax as he presents evidence of Iraq’s alleged weapons programs to the United Nations Security Council. Powell, former Joint Chiefs chairman and secretary of state, has died from COVID-19 complications. In an announcement on social media Monday, the family said Powell had been fully vaccinated. He was 84. (AP Photo/Elise Amendola, File)

3/23

In this Dec. 16, 2000, file photo, President-elect Bush smiles as he introduces retired Gen. Colin Powell, left, as his nominee to be secretary of state during a ceremony in Crawford, Texas. Powell, former Joint Chiefs chairman and secretary of state, has died from COVID-19 complications. In an announcement on social media Monday, the family said Powell had been fully vaccinated. He was 84. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip)

4/23

In this Feb. 15, 2001, file photo, Secretary of State Colin Powell looks on as President Bush addresses State Department employees at the State Department in Washington. Powell, former Joint Chiefs chairman and secretary of state, has died from COVID-19 complications. In an announcement on social media Monday, the family said Powell had been fully vaccinated. He was 84. (AP Photo/Kenneth Lambert)

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In this Sept. 14, 1990, file photo, Gen. Colin Powell, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, speaks to newsmen in Dhahran, Saudi Arabia, after visiting American troops who are deployed in the country. Powell, former Joint Chiefs chairman and secretary of state, has died from COVID-19 complications. In an announcement on social media Monday, the family said Powell had been fully vaccinated. He was 84. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

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In this May 21, 2001, file photo, Secretary of State Colin Powell talks with reporters during a news conference at the Department of State in Washington. Powell, former Joint Chiefs chairman and secretary of state, has died from COVID-19 complications. In an announcement on social media Monday, the family said Powell had been fully vaccinated. He was 84. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite, File)

7/23

In this Sept. 25, 1991, file photo, Gen. Colin Powell, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, speaks on Capitol Hill in Washington, at a House Armed Services subcommittee. Powell, former Joint Chiefs chairman and secretary of state, has died from COVID-19 complications. In an announcement on social media Monday, the family said Powell had been fully vaccinated. He was 84. (AP Photo/Marcy Nighswander, File)

8/23

Gen. Colin Powell, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, is shown in a 1989 photo. Powell, former Joint Chiefs chairman and secretary of state, has died from COVID-19 complications, his family said Monday, Oct. 18, 2021. (AP Photo)

9/23

Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Colin Powell speaks at the Veterans of Foreign Wars convention in Washington on Monday, March 4, 1991. Powell, former Joint Chiefs chairman and secretary of state, has died from COVID-19 complications, his family said Monday, Oct. 18, 2021. (AP Photo/Dennis Cook, file)

10/23

In this Dec. 30, 1986, file photo, U.S. Lieutenant General Colin Powell, commander of the 5th U.S. corps, salutes while his wife Alma stands in attention during a farewell ceremony in Frankfurt. Powell, who went on to become the chairman of the Joint Chiefs and U.S. Secretary of State, has died from COVID-19 complications, his family said Monday, Oct. 18, 2021. (AP Photo/Udo Weitz)

11/23

In this May 7, 2002, file photo, Secretary of State Colin Powell receives a pat on the cheek from National Security Advisor Condoleezza Rice, right, in the Oval Office during the meeting between President Bush, and Prime Minister of Israel Ariel Sharon at the White House in Washington. Powell, former Joint Chiefs chairman and secretary of state, has died from COVID-19 complications. In an announcement on social media Monday, the family said Powell had been fully vaccinated. He was 84. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais, Pool)

12/23

In this Dec. 1, 2010, file photo, President Barack Obama talks with reporters after his meeting with former Secretary of State Colin Powell, left, on the importance of ratifying the New START Treaty, in the Oval Office at the White in Washington. Powell, former Joint Chiefs chairman and secretary of state, has died from COVID-19 complications. In an announcement on social media Monday, the family said Powell had been fully vaccinated. He was 84. AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite) (AP/J. Scott Applewhite)

13/23

In this Jan. 12, 2006, file photo, German Chancellor Angela Merkel, left, smiles next to former Secretary of State Colin Powell, during a reception at the German Embassy in Washington. Powell, former Joint Chiefs chairman and secretary of state, has died from COVID-19 complications. In an announcement on social media Monday, the family said Powell had been fully vaccinated. He was 84. (AP Photo/Michael Dalder, Pool)

14/23

In this Jan. 5, 2006, file photo, President Bush, center, meets with Secretaries of State and Defense in the Roosevelt Room at the White House. From left to right are Secretary of Defense Donald H. Rumsfeld, Vice President Dick Cheney, Bush, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, and former Secretary of State Colin Powell. Powell, former Joint Chiefs chairman and secretary of state, has died from COVID-19 complications. In an announcement on social media Monday, the family said Powell had been fully vaccinated. He was 84. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)

15/23

In this Dec. 9, 2004 file photo, U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell, front right, reaches out to German Foreign Minister Joschka Fischer, second left, as Greek Foreign Minister Petros Molyviatis, center, looks on during a group photo of NATO foreign ministers at NATO headquarters in Brussels. Powell, former Joint Chiefs chairman and secretary of state, has died from COVID-19 complications. In an announcement on social media Monday, the family said Powell had been fully vaccinated. He was 84. (AP Photo/Virginia Mayo)

16/23

In this Aug. 2, 2004 file photo, President Bush, center, makes remarks in the Rose Garden of the White House, about his plans to implement the Sept. 11. Commission’s recommendation to create a national intelligence director. Left to right Secretary of Homeland Security Tom Ridge, Secretary of State Colin Powell, Bush, Secretary of Defense Donald H. Rumsfeld, and FBI Director Robert Mueller. Powell, former Joint Chiefs chairman and secretary of state, has died from COVID-19 complications. In an announcement on social media Monday, the family said Powell had been fully vaccinated. He was 84. (AP Photo/Ron Edmonds)

17/23

In this file photo taken on Monday, Dec. 10, 2001, Russian President Vladimir Putin, right, and U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell shake hands during their meeting in the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia. Colin Powell, former Joint Chiefs chairman and secretary of state, has died from COVID-19 complications. In an announcement on social media Monday, Oct. 18, 2021, the family said Powell had been fully vaccinated. Powell was the first African American to serve as chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and secretary of state. (Yuri Kadobnov/Pool Photo via AP, File)

18/23

In this file photo taken on Wednesday, July 24, 1991, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Colin Powell, left, smiles during his meeting with Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev, right, at the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia. Colin Powell, former Joint Chiefs chairman and secretary of state, has died from COVID-19 complications. In an announcement on social media Monday, the family said Powell had been fully vaccinated. Powell was the first African American to serve as chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and secretary of state. (AP Photo, File)

19/23

In this Feb. 8, 1985 file photo, U.S. Defense Secretary Casper Weinberger confers with Army Maj. Gen. Colin Powell during testimony before the Senate Budget Committee on Capitol Hill in Washington. Powell, who went on to serve as chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and later secretary of state, has died from COVID-19 complications, his family said Monday, Oct. 18, 2021. He was 84. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite, File)

20/23

In this file photo taken on Tuesday, June 29, 2004, Secretary of State Colin Powell, left, and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov shake hands during a meeting at a NATO summit in Istanbul, Turkey. Colin Powell, former Joint Chiefs chairman and secretary of state, has died from COVID-19 complications. In an announcement on social media Monday, the family said Powell had been fully vaccinated. Powell was the first African American to serve as chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and secretary of state. (AP Photo, File)

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Secretary of State Colin Powell addresses the United Nations Security Council Wednesday, Feb. 5, 2003, at U.N. headquarters. Powell, former Joint Chiefs chairman and secretary of state, has died from COVID-19 complications. In an announcement on social media Monday, Oct. 18, 2021 the family said Powell had been fully vaccinated. He was 84. (AP Photo/Elise Amendola, file)

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U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell speaks during a news conference at the United Nations headquarters Friday, Sept. 26, 2003. Powell, former Joint Chiefs chairman and secretary of state, has died from COVID-19 complications. In an announcement on social media Monday, Oct. 18, 2021 the family said Powell had been fully vaccinated. He was 84. (AP Photo/Mary Altaffer)

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U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell makes a statement to the media after a meeting at U.N. headquarters, Thursday, Aug. 21, 2003. Powell, former Joint Chiefs chairman and secretary of state, has died from COVID-19 complications. In an announcement on social media Monday, Oct. 18, 2021 the family said Powell had been fully vaccinated. He was 84. (AP Photo/Mary Altaffer, file)