World leaders expected in Morocco sunday for funerals of late King Hassan II

Several world leaders, monarchs and officials have announced their participation in the funerals of the late King Hassan II, who died Friday at 16h30 (local and GMT) of a heart attack at Ibn Sina Hospital in Rabat.

Initially scheduled after mid-day, the funeral service was postponed to 16:15 GMT and local time ("Al Asr" prayer) to allow for foreign officials to arrive in Morocco.

Here is a list of foreign officials who have so far announced participation in the funerals of the late King Hassan II:

- King Abdullah and Queen Rania of Jordan

- Egyptian president, Hosni Mubarak

- Tunisian president Zine El Abidine Ben Ali

- Palestinian President Yasser Arafat

- Senegalese President Abdou Diouf,

- Mauritanian president Mouaouyia Ould Sid Ahmed Taya,

- The Emir of Bahrain Sheikh Hamad ben Issa Al-Khalifa,

- Crown prince and prime minister of Kuwait, Sheikh Saad al-Abdallah Al-Sabah

- Saudi defense minister, prince Sultan ben Abdel Aziz

- Yemeni president Ali Abdallah Saleh

- Iraqi Vice-President Taha Yassine Ramadan and foreign minister Mohammad Said al-Sahhaf

- Secretary-General of the Arab League, Esmat Abdelmeguid

- King Juan Carlos and Queen Sofia of Spain

- US president Bill Clinton and his spouse Hillary Rodham Clinton

- French president Jacques Chirac and his spouse

- Prince Charles of Britain

- Italian president Carlo Azeglio Ciampi

- French foreign minister, Hubert Vedrine, representing the French government

- British secretary to the foreign office Robin Cook

- Former Japanese prime minister Ryutaro Hashimoto

- Prince Takamado, cousin of Japanese emperor Akihito

- Speaker of the Council of the Russian federation (upper chamber of the parliament), Egor Stro–ev

- King Albert of Belgium and Belgian foreign minister Louis Michel,

- South African president Thabo Mbeki

- Prime minister of Bangladesh Sheikh Hasina Wajed,

- Israeli president Ezer Weizman, prime minister, Ehud Barak, and foreign minister David Levy

- Former French President Valery Giscard D'estaing

- President of the Swiss Confederation, Ruth Dreifuss

- Portuguese President Jorge Sampaio

- President of Equatorial Guinea, Theodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo

a-Speaker of the European Parliament, Nicole Fontaine

- The European Union Envoy for the Middle-East, Miguel Moratinos

- German President Johannes Rau

- Italian Foreign Minister, Lamberto Dini

- President of Cote D'Ivoire, Henri Conan Bedie

- Advisor to the People's Republic of China, Ismael Amal

- Speaker of the Austrian Parliament, Heinz Fischer

- General Governor of Canada, Michel le Blanc.