The funeral was the culmination of two weeks of national mourning. Posters, pictures and quotes attributed to the late Prime Minister were ubiquitous in nearly every street of the capital. The State funeral - Ethiopia's first in more than 80 years. The ceremony was broadcast live and huge screens erected in cities and villages around the country. The coffin was accompanied by hundreds of mourners, including Meles' widow, Azeb Mesfin, the BBC said. The last Ethiopian leader to be honoured with a State funeral was the Empress Zauditu in 1930.
Al Jazeera Television said several foreign dignitaries arrived in the Ethiopian capital on Saturday to pay their respects and sign a book of condolences at the National Palace, where Meles' coffin was on display. The flag-draped coffin was later carried in a procession from his palace to the city's Meskel Square, where a solemn religious ceremony held. The remains were later laid to rest at the city's Holy Trinity Cathedral besides Emperor Haile Selassie, who was murdered in 1975 by coup leaders, the BBC reported.
Thousands of mourners, foreign dignitaries among whom were African Union Chairman and President of Benin, Yayi Boni, Jacob Zuma of South Africa, Omar al-Bashir of Sudan, Goodluck Jonathan of Nigeria, Salva Kiir of South Sudan, Rwanda’s Paul Kagame and Microsoft Chairman, Bill Gates, attended the event.
Meles came to power in 1991 after toppling Mengistu Hailemariam. He was credited for bringing development and growth to Ethiopia. But while he was credited with bringing about widespread economic growth, many criticised him for what they said was a crackdown on opposition groups and journalists.
Meles will be succeeded by his deputy, Hailemariam Desalegn, 47. He will formally take over as Prime Minister after Meles' funeral, and will serve until elections in 2015. Desalegn, whose swearing in date has not yet been fixed, is a relatively unknown politician from southern Ethiopia, unlike many of the country's political elite who are from the north.
