Former Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon`s funeral to be held today

Israeli former Prime Minister Ariel Sharon will be buried on Monday at a site close to his family`s Sycamore Ranch in the southern Negev desert after a military funeral, following a memorial service at the Knesset which will be attended by dignitaries including US Vice President Joe Biden.

Zee Media Bureau

Tel Aviv: Israeli former Prime Minister Ariel Sharon will be buried on Monday at a site close to his family`s Sycamore Ranch in the southern Negev desert after a military funeral, following a memorial service at the Knesset which will be attended by dignitaries including US Vice President Joe Biden.
He passed away Saturday at a medical centre after being comatose for eight years. Sharon will be buried next to his second wife Lily Sharon, who died of cancer 14 years ago.

The 85-year-old leader suffered a stroke in 2006 and slipped into a coma. His condition deteriorated last week after he suffered a kidney failure. He died at the Sheba Medical Centre near Tel Aviv.

His first wife Margalit was killed in a car accident in 1962. In 1968, his 11-year-old son Gur was killed while playing with a gun.

His casket will be stationed in the Knesset (parliament) to enable the public to pay their last respect, local media reported.

Sharon was the first prime minister of Israel to visit India. He flew to New Delhi at the invitation of then prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee.
A former defence and foreign minister, Sharon -- one of the most controversial Israeli leaders -- took part in several Israeli military campaigns, playing a controversial role in the 1982 Lebanese war.

From being a leader of the Likud party, Sharon was often blamed for the second Palestinian intifada.

While paying tribute to late Israeli prime minister Ariel Sharon, President Barack Obama recalled him as a "a leader who dedicated his life to the State of Israel."

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