BEIRUT: Prominent exiled opposition figure Michel Kilo died of Covid-19 on Monday in Paris after a lifetime of peaceful struggle against Baath party rule in Syria, colleagues said.

Kilo, who turned 80 last year, was a key player in efforts to form a credible non-violent alternative to President Bashar al-Assad's regime during the early stages of the conflict that erupted a decade ago.

"A great loss. Michel Kilo departed today after he was infected with Covid-19," senior opposition figure Nasr Hariri wrote in a statement.

"Michel was an intellectual and patriotic powerhouse and his dream was to see a free and democratic Syria. God willing, the Syrian people will carry on this dream and see it through," he said.