Crowds gather for funeral of Iraq cleric

Tens of thousands of people are expected to pay their last respects as a religious leader killed in a car bomb is buried in Iraq today.

Iraqi security guards have taken control of the city of Najaf as the cortege of Ayatollah Muhammad Baqr al- Hakin made its final approach. Coalition troops were reported to be adopting a low profile.

The cortege's arrival follows a three-day funeral procession around southern Iraq with the dead cleric's coffin taken to a number of holy shrines before burial, as the Shia tradition demands.

At least 80 people were killed in the massive car bomb on Friday and passions are still running high after the attack, which has been blamed on either supporters of Saddam Hussein or of al Qaeda.