Leaders arrive for Ethiopian prime minister's funeral
- 12 years ago
(ROUGH CUT ONLY - NO REPORTER NARRATION)
African leaders on Saturday (September 1) paid their last respects to former Ethiopian Prime Minister Meles Zenawi, who died on August 21 in Brussels where he was being treated for an unspecified ailment.
The leaders arrived in the Ethiopian capital Addis Ababa, for the once powerful prime minister's funeral, which will take place on Sunday (September 2).
Rwandan president, Paul Kagame said Meles' death was not only a blow to Ethiopia but the whole continent.
"Me personally, my country and I know the rest of Africa have lost a great person," he said.
Meles, widely credited for steering one of the world's poorest countries to sustained high economic growth, had his image tainted after his crackdown on opposition leaders in the wake of the disputed 2005 election.
Among African leaders expected to attend Sunday's funeral are Sudan's President Omar Hassan al-Bashir who laid a wreath at Meles' coffin on Saturday. Bashir is wanted by the International Criminal Court for war crimes in Darfur, charges the Sudanese government says are politically motivated and baseless.
African leaders on Saturday (September 1) paid their last respects to former Ethiopian Prime Minister Meles Zenawi, who died on August 21 in Brussels where he was being treated for an unspecified ailment.
The leaders arrived in the Ethiopian capital Addis Ababa, for the once powerful prime minister's funeral, which will take place on Sunday (September 2).
Rwandan president, Paul Kagame said Meles' death was not only a blow to Ethiopia but the whole continent.
"Me personally, my country and I know the rest of Africa have lost a great person," he said.
Meles, widely credited for steering one of the world's poorest countries to sustained high economic growth, had his image tainted after his crackdown on opposition leaders in the wake of the disputed 2005 election.
Among African leaders expected to attend Sunday's funeral are Sudan's President Omar Hassan al-Bashir who laid a wreath at Meles' coffin on Saturday. Bashir is wanted by the International Criminal Court for war crimes in Darfur, charges the Sudanese government says are politically motivated and baseless.