Kenya flights suspended as body of  Raila Odinga is repatriated

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Nairobi, Kenya | AFP

Huge crowds gathered across Kenya on Thursday as the body of revered opposition leader Raila Odinga was repatriated from India, forcing the authorities to suspend flights and change memorial plans.

As a large number of mourners gathered at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport to greet the coffin, the civil aviation authority announced that it had temporarily suspended operations to "restore order and ensure safety".

The body was initially taken to parliament, but with supporters swarming and clambering up the gates, the authorities decided to relocate the coffin to Kasarani Stadium.

(FILES) Raila Odinga, Kenya's Azimio La Umoja Party (One Kenya Coalition Party) presidential candidate, speaks during a church service at St Francis ACK Church in Karen, near Nairobi, on August 14, 2022. (AFP)

Odinga, 80, died of a suspected heart attack while visiting a health clinic in southern India on Wednesday.

President William Ruto has announced seven days of national mourning for Odinga, who ran unsuccessfully for the presidency five times but played a major role in Kenyan politics over several decades and was a figurehead for large swathes of the population.

The authorities said they would create "public grieving spaces" around Nairobi before a state funeral service on Friday.

State television showed large numbers also gathered in Bondo, the family's ancestral seat in western Kenya where Odinga is due to be buried on Sunday.

The crowds were a sea of green as many waved branches, a symbol of respect for the fallen leader.