Stalins adored granddaughter dead

The adored granddaughter of former Soviet tyrant Joseph Stalin has died in Moscow at the age of 69.

London, Aug.29 : The adored granddaughter of former Soviet tyrant Joseph Stalin has died in Moscow at the age of 69.

Galina Dzhugashvili grew up enjoying rare privilege in the grim era of the Soviet Union.

Stalin doted on her, although that did not stop him jailing her mother, wrongly accusing her of conniving with the Nazis.

To the end, Galina denied Stalin's brutal oppression of his people.

When asked to explain the 20 million killed on her grandfather's orders, The Mirror quoted her as saying: "You should not believe the statistics."

Galina, a writer and interpreter, was the daughter of Stalin's son, Yakov. He was captured by the Nazis in the Second World War. But Stalin refused to swap him for a German general he was holding prisoner. Mystery surrounds his death.

When asked if Stalin was a good man, Galina said: "Good is not a word to describe a politician. But he was a good grandfather, and I loved him."

ANI