Afghanistan was preparing on Tuesday for the funeral of its last king Mohammed Zahir Shah, as the war-torn country bids farewell to the man known as the "Father of the Nation".
KABUL: Afghanistan was preparing on Tuesday for the funeral of its last king Mohammed Zahir Shah, as the war-torn country bids farewell to the man known as the "Father of the Nation".
Afghans were to hold prayer ceremonies across the country he led for 40 years, a period of stability and calm before decades of upheaval and virtually non-stop war.
His funeral and burial were to be held in the capital Kabul, where the government of President Hamid Karzai has been trying to consolidate its rule in the face of a bitter and bloody insurgency by the deposed militant Taliban.
The king, who died Monday aged 92, returned from 29 years of exile after the Taliban were toppled by a US-led invasion following the September 11 attacks, and was given the honourary title of "Father of the Nation".
Flags were at half mast across the country as Karzai declared three days of mourning for the late king -- the last monarch to rule Afghanistan.
Zahir Shah ended the centuries-old monarchy when he abdicated while on holiday in Italy in 1973, after hearing his former premier Mohammad Daud, who was also his cousin, had staged a coup.
"Zahir Shah was a monumental figure in Afghan history, and his life spanned vast changes in that country's political system," US President George W. Bush said in a statement released by the White House.
He said the king had "continued to play an important part in the life of his country" after returning to Afghanistan as an "ordinary citizen" in 2002, shortly after the Taliban's ouster.
The militants said the king had "enjoyed a lot of credibility" before he returned to the country.
"Unfortunately, recently the Americans used him for their interests," Taliban spokesman Yousuf Ahmadi told AFP. "From his return to Afghanistan until the day he died, he served US interests and became a stooge."
Zahir Shah was in poor health for the last years of his life.
His wife Homaira, whom he married in 1931, died as preparations were under way for her to return to Afghanistan to join her husband in 2002. The couple had five sons and two daughters.
Queen Elizabeth II said she was "deeply saddened" by his death, adding in a statement issued by the British embassy in Kabul that "his great experience and wisdom will be missed."
"It is with fond memories that I recall his visit to Britain in 1971. I am aware of the affection and respect with which he was held by the people of Afghanistan," the queen said.
British Prime Minister Gordon Brown said Zahir Shah "played a unique role in helping to restore the unity of the Afghan people and Afghanistan's democratic values."
India said it would mark Shah's death by lowering its national flag on Tuesday on state buildings and diplomatic missions worldwide.
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