Hundreds of thousands of mourners gathered in the Cambodian capital Phnom Penh yesterday to pay their respects to former king Norodom Sihanouk, the aristocrat who led his country to independence in 1953 but was forced into exile after a US-backed coup.
The revered “king-father” survived numerous wars and the murderous Khmer Rouge regime to hold centre stage in Cambodia for more than half a century. He died in the Chinese capital Beijing in October aged 89.
During his rule he juggled both sides of the political spectrum, including the Khmer Rouge. In 1970, he was ousted by a US-backed coup. While in China, he signed a deal with the Khmer Rouge and returned as head of state when it seized power in 1975.
In 2004, he voluntarily abdicated, citing poor health.
