Austria's Far Right Haider Dies In Car Crash

Joerg Haider, a prominent Austrian far rght politician, has died in a road accident, local media has reported.

Haider was driving his car  on Saturday in the south of Klagenfurt, when it veered off the road for unknown reasons.

The 58-year-old Haider was governor of Carinthia and leader of the far right Alliance for the Future of Austria (BZOe).

"The governor of Carinthia and leader of the BZOe, Joerg Haider died after a car accident early Saturday in Klagenfurt", Austria's APA news agency said.

Haider was taken to hospital but pronounced dead shortly thereafter.

Haider headed the BZOe after turning the country's Freedom Party (FPOe) into a political force in the 1980s and 1990s and prompting EU sanctions against Austria in 2000.

He transformed from a young firebrand to an experienced politician in the past decade, helping the BZOe party, only founded in 2005, to its best result in general elections held last month.

In video

Haider's controversal history He suffered serious injuries to his head and chest as his car flipped over several times and died shortly after the accident.