The World

The Chinese Communist Party celebrated its 90th birthday on Friday, with a party full of political stars and one notable absence.

Former President Jiang Zemin, who ruled the country from 1993-2003, was not on stage at the big party in Beijing, where the country's leaders and retired officials gathered to fete the CCP. Jiang is rumored to be ill, but it's unclear with what or how serious his illness might be. Singapore's Straits Times newspaper quoted a Hong Kong television report saying, "In April, former president Jiang Zemin was hit by a sudden and very serious illness."

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