Cambodia mourns as King Norodom Sihanouk's body returns

 

 King Norodom Sihanouk's body will remain at the royal palace for three months before it is cremated

The body of former King Norodom Sihanouk has been returned to Cambodia for a week of official mourning.

His coffin was flown from the Chinese capital, Beijing, where he died on Monday of a heart attack at age 89.
Tens of thousands of people lined the streets near the airport in the capital, Phnom Penh, as the plane carrying Sihanouk's body touched down.
Grieving Cambodians wore white shirts with black ribbons, and flags flew at half-mast after the news of his death.
"There are more than 100,000 people lining the streets. More are coming," Khieu Kanharith, a government spokesman, told reporters at the airport.
In the capital, students sang songs before offering flowers at the royal palace.
"In the king's whole life, whatever he did was for the country, not for himself. So we are here to mourn him and we consider that he is a hero and I never had this sadness in 20 years," Lay Rithiya, a law student, told Reuters news agency.
Officials from the US, China, North Korea, Japan and other countries also sent messages of condolence.

Norodom Sihanouk

• First crowned king in 1941 at the age of 19
• Led Cambodia to independence from France
• Aligned with Khmer Rouge in its early years, but held under house arrest while regime was in power
• Spent long periods in exile in China
• Worked in 1990s to bring stability and peace to Cambodia
• Abdicated in 2004 in favour of his son, citing ill-health

Funeral plans

Early on Wednesday, the former king's coffin was driven from the Beijing hospital where he died to the airport for the flight home.

The flight landed in Phnom Penh at 15:00 local time (08:00GMT).
Sihanouk's widow, Queen Monique, held hands with her son, King Norodom Sihamoni, as they emerged from the plane, Agence-France Presse (AFP) news agency reports.
The queen wore the traditional mourning clothes of a white shirt and black skirt.
The former king's coffin, decked with white flowers, was seen being brought out of the plane as monks chanted prayers, AFP says.
Mourners in white shirts and waving Cambodian flags were on the streets to see the coffin pass by on its way to the royal palace.
Sihanouk's body will remain at the palace for three months for people to pay their respects before an elaborate funeral and cremation, said the government.
The government has ordered all radio and television stations to refrain from broadcasting any programmes that may be deemed inappropriate during the mourning period.
Sihanouk became king in 1941 while still a teenager, and led Cambodia to independence from France in 1953.
He was a presence through decades of political and social turmoil in Cambodia, despite long periods of exile overseas.
In later life, he emerged as a peacemaker who helped bring stability back to his country, after an ill-fated choice to back the Khmer Rouge in its early years.
He remained an influential figure in his country, despite his abdication in 2004 in favour of his son King Norodom Sihamoni.