USA TODAY International Edition
Israelis flock to mourn former president Shimon Peres
Peres considered the last of Israel’s founding fathers.
Israelis paid their JERUSALEM respects Thursday to Shimon Peres, former president and prime minister, as his body lay in state at the nation's parliament.
Peres died Wednesday after suffering a stroke two weeks ago. He was 93.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and President Reuven Rivlin were among thou- sands of mourners expected to view Peres' body ahead of his state funeral here on Friday. Netanyahu and Rivlin laid wreaths next to Peres’ coffin during a silent ceremony.
An honor guard flanked Peres’ flag- draped casket as a military chaplain recited Hebrew psalms.
Israeli media reported Thursday that Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas had decided to attend Peres’ funeral on Friday morning, despite pressure from leaders in the Arab world not to do so.
Dozens of world leaders and diplomats including President Obama, former president Bill Clinton and French President Francois Hollande are expected to attend the funeral, which will take place at the Mount Herzl national cemetery in Jerusalem, where many of Israel’s late leaders are buried.
Peres will be buried between former prime ministers Yitzhak Shamir and Yitzhak Rabin, with whom he shared a Nobel Peace Prize.
Peres' casket was transported by motorcade from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem early Thursday and will lie in state in the grand plaza of the Knesset until Thursday night.
Members of the public were permitted to enter the outdoor plaza — they arrived by shuttle buses and by foot through streets that were closed to traffic by police.
Jerusalem is expected to all but shut down before and after the funeral Friday to allow for tight security measures.
The funeral will take place just hours before the start of the Jewish Sabbath, when most of the city shuts down, and two days before the start of the Rosh Hashanahholiday that begins Sunday night.
Peres, who had a 55- year political career, was considered the last of Israel’s founding fathers.