Obituaries

Frederick Forsyth, who has died at the age of 86, wrote meticulously researched thrillers which sold in their millions.

Lois E. Dokken, 83, died at home in Falls Church on April 26, 2025, succumbing to fallopian tube cancer after a long and courageous fight.

Bernard Kerik, the New York City police chief who was hailed for leading the department during the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.

Marthe Cohn, who has died aged 105, was born into an Orthodox Jewish family in France; she survived the Holocaust and after the liberation of Paris in 1944, joined the French First Army intelligence service and crossed over into southern Germany, posing as a German nurse looking for her fiancé.

Paulette Dietz Kachilla, age 69, passed away on Tuesday, May 13, 2025, surrounded by her family. She was born in Washington, DC.

Michael Ledeen, a provocative neoconservative who advised Washington policymakers to crush Islamic terrorists, disparaged a free press and helped instigate the Iran-contra arms-for-hostages scandal during the Reagan administration, died on Saturday in Austin, Texas. He was 83.

Marilyn Maines, 74, of Silver Spring Md, left this life on April 23, 2025 after a valiant fight against cancer. Family, friends, and co-workers will miss her warmth and her love for everyone around her.

Joseph S. Nye Jr., an influential figure in shaping American national security policy, who wrote seminal books on foreign affairs, held top jobs at Harvard and in government, and coined the term “soft power” — the idea that America’s global influence was more than its military might — died on Tuesday in Cambridge, Mass. He was 88.

Donald (Don) Jones died of pancreatic cancer comfortably and peacefully on Sunday, April 13, 2025, at age 89.