Sean Hannity Calls Alan Colmes’ Battle with Illness ‘the Single Greatest Amount of Courage I’ve Ever Seen’

Fox News’ Sean Hannity is grieving the loss of his colleague and dear friend, Alan Colmes.

On Thursday, America’s Newsroom co-anchor Bill Hemmer revealed that the longtime correspondent had died after a brief illness. He was 66.

Following the announcement, Hannity took to Twitter to share an old photo of the pair along with a touching message.

“Alan was a dear friend. I miss him dearly. Please pray for my friend and his family!” he wrote.

Hannity also released a statement to PEOPLE with a touching message.

“The Fox family, Dr. Jocelyn Colmes, Monica Crowley and me personally have lost one of life’s most decent, kind and wonderful people you’d ever want to meet. When Alan and I started Hannity and Colmes, there wasn’t a day that went by where we didn’t say we were two most fortunate men in all television,” he said.

“Despite major political differences, we forged a deep friendship. Alan, in the midst of great sickness and illness, showed the single greatest amount of courage I’ve ever seen. And through it all, he showed his incredible wit and humor that was Alan’s signature throughout his entire life,” Hannity’s statement continued. “I’m truly heartbroken at the loss of a dear friend. Our thoughts and prayers are with Jocelyn, Monica and his entire family. He will be dearly missed.”