Funeral ceremony for Hugo Chavez in Caracas, body to be embalmed

Scores of world leaders and activists gathered at a military academy to bid goodbye to the man who ruled Venezuela for about 12 years.

Among those bidding farewell was Iran’s president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad , and Reverend Jessie Jackson of the United States. Government representatives from all over the Caribbean, Europe, North and South Korea, and Syria were also in attendance.

As the ceremony took place indoors, thousands of Venezuelans took to the streets outside in sweltering heat to mourn their fallen leader. Military bands launched into marches and loyal supporters decked out in red with many wearing replicas of the presidential sash.

Following the ceremony, vice president Nicolas Maduro was sworn in as interim president, and he is expected to pave the way for presidential elections within 30 days.

Meanwhile, Maduro announced that Chavez’s body will be embalmed and put on permanent display in a glass coffin in the Museum of the Revolution in Caracas.