Mourners gather in Vietnam for leader's funeral

Vietnam's President To Lam attending the funeral of Communist Party of Vietnam General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong at the National Funeral House in Hanoi on July 25, 2024. - Reuters

HANOI: Thousands of mourners, including top Vietnamese officials, schoolchildren and monks, gathered in Hanoi on Thursday (July 25) for the funeral of Communist Party leader Nguyen Phu Trong as two days of national mourning began.

The 80-year-old, who died at a military hospital in the capital Hanoi last week "due to old age and serious illness", was Vietnam's most powerful leader in decades.