Assad funeral begins

The funeral of President Hafez al-Assad has begun in the Syrian capital, Damascus.

As dawn broke hours before the ceremony, people on foot or in black-draped vehicles returned to the streets chanting slogans lamenting the president's death -- scenes that have been almost continuous since the president died last Saturday.

The funeral cortege is now making its way from the presidential quarters 0600 BST to the People's Palace for a five-hour lying-in-state.

Foreign mourners include nine heads of state, among them President Jacque Chirac of France -- the highest-ranking representative of the western countries.

The United States has sent the Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, who is closely involved in trying to reconcile Syria and Israel. She has called on President Assad's son and probable successor, Bashar Assad, to continue the policy of seeking peace. President Assad's body will later be flown to his home village of Qardaha in northern Syria for burial at the family mausoleum arrival expected 1430BST.

From the newsroom of the BBC World Service