{The body of Ariel Sharon, Israel’s hard-charging former prime minister and general will be brought to Israel’s parliament building in Jerusalem where it will lie in state, a day after his death aged 85.}<\/p>\n
The prime minister’s office said in a statement early on Sunday that the coffin will be brought to the Knesset later in the day.<\/p>\n
“The public will be able to pay its respects until 18:00 (16:00 GMT),” it said.<\/p>\n
Thousands of Israelis are expected to pay tribute at the Knesset, police said.<\/p>\n
A state memorial is planned for Monday with the participation of Israeli and world leaders, the prime minister’s office said.<\/p>\n
US Vice President Joe Biden, former British Prime Minister Tony Blair, Czech Prime Minister Jiri Rusnok, German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier and others will attend, it added.<\/p>\n
Afterwards Sharon’s body will be taken by military convoy for burial at his ranch.<\/p>\n
One of Israel’s most controversial figures, Sharon had been in a coma for eight years after a devastating stroke incapacitated him at the peak of his political power.<\/p>\n
‘Pariah’<\/p>\n
Celebrated as a military hero by some, recognised as a pragmatic politician by others and despised as a bloodthirsty criminal by his foes, Sharon was a polarising figure at home and abroad.<\/p>\n
News of his death and tales of his exploits dominated Israel’s newspapers and TV stations on Sunday.<\/p>\n
Sharon’s career stretched across Israel’s 65-year existence and his life was closely intertwined with the country’s history.<\/p>\n
As one of Israel’s most famous generals, Sharon was known for bold tactics and an occasional refusal to obey orders.<\/p>\n
Sharon was once known chiefly as a ruthless military leader who fought in all of Israel’s major wars, before switching to politics in 1973 and championing the development of Jewish settlements in the occupied Palestinian territories.<\/p>\n
He was long considered a pariah for his personal but “indirect” responsibility in the 1982 massacre of hundreds of Palestinians by Israel’s Lebanese Phalangist allies in Beirut’s Sabra and Shatila refugee camps.<\/p>\n
Source:
\n Agencies<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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