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 PHIL
PONCE: Early today, the flag-draped coffin carrying the body of Jordan's
King Hussein left his home. All five of his sons were in close attendance.
The king called his home the Door of Peace Palace after the peace he forged
with Israel. An honor guard of Bedouin troops accompanied the casket of
the 63-year-old monarch on a 90-minute procession through the streets
of the capital city of Amman. An estimated 800,000 Jordanians, many of
them weeping, braved icy winds to say farewell to their leader, who died
of  cancer
yesterday. Riot police were stationed along the nine-mile route to try
to hold back the crowds who scrambled for a glimpse of the coffin. Hussein's
widow, the American-born Queen Noor, stood in a doorway surrounded by
other royal women dressed in black with white scarves. White is the color
of mourning in Jordan. In deference to Muslim tradition, the royal women
did not participate in the formal funeral devotions. |
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 At
Raghadan Palace, the new king, Hussein's eldest son, Abdullah, and the
royal princes formally received the coffin. Also, there were more than
40 kings, presidents, prime ministers, and other leaders, and an even
larger group of former leaders and other dignitaries.
It was the largest gathering of royal and political leaders since the
funeral of Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin in 1995. In a show of
unusual political diversity, leaders of radical Arab states were side
by side with officials from western democracies. President Clinton and
former  Presidents
Bush, Carter, and Ford represented the United States, a longtime ally
of Jordan's. Their presence reflected Hussein's long and usually warm
relationship with the United States going back to the Eisenhower era.
Visitors paid their respects in the throne room of the king's Hashemite
Dynasty.
Britain sent Prime Minister Tony Blair and Prince Charles. French President
Jacques Chirac and German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder also came. The
funeral brought bitter enemies together. Syrian President Hafez Al-Assad
had never attended an event with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Palestinian Leader Yasser Arafat,  once
Hussein's foe, came to Amman to mourn the loss of his recent partner
in peace. Neighboring Iraq was represented by its vice president. Libyan
Leader Moammar Qadaffi sent his eldest son. Czech president Vaclav Havel
and Russian president Boris Yeltsin, themselves seriously ill, also
came-- Yeltsin against the advice of his doctors. According to Jordanian
officials, Yeltsin returned home earlier than expected for medical reasons.
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 Bagpipes
played as the casket was taken from the palace to a mosque on a gun
carriage. A white stallion favored by the king trotted behind. Prayers
at the mosque were attended only by Muslims, while many of the world
leaders waited outside. At the royal cemetery, Hussein's body, dressed
in a simple white shroud, was lowered into the ground. The new king
carefully laid his father's face to one side in rest. In honor of the
king's love for British ceremony, trumpets sounded the last post, and
the honor guard fired a salute. Queen Noor watched from the gates of
the cemetery as the body of her husband was laid to rest.
 Ordinary
Jordanians grieved for Hussein. Christians, who make up about 8 percent
of Jordan's four million people, flocked to churches. Black flags flew
outside homes, and shops and businesses were shut in mourning. Following
the funeral, Jordan's new king, 37-year-old Abdullah, received many
of the world leaders. His dying father picked the professional soldier
as his successor just two weeks ago. Abdullah led Jordan's special forces.
Next to him was Prince Hassan, Hussein's brother, who had been the heir
apparent since 1965. Abdullah has promised to carry on his father's
policies.
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