أكبر جنازة في التاريخ ستكون لمانديلا بدون زعماء سورية والسودان
Mandela funeral to bring together world's most powerful people Political and cultural elite set to attend funeral where Mandela's spirit of reconciliation may offer backdrop to unusual meetings Julian Borger, diplomatic editor, and Daniel Howden in Johannesburg The Guardian, Friday 6 December 2013 18.46 GMT Mandela's funeral could provide the backdrop to his first meeting with Iran's leader, Hassan Rouhani. Photograph: Evan Vucci/AP World leaders are preparing to converge in unprecedented numbers on South Africa for Nelson Mandela's funeral, likely to be one of the biggest global gatherings of powerful people in modern history. As South Africa embarked on nine days of mourning, comparisons were being drawn with earlier mammoth funeral ceremonies, of Pope John Paul II, Princess Diana, President John F Kennedy and Winston Churchill. But Mandela's appeal was even broader, cutting across religious divides and the usual geopolitical barriers