Cyprus President rushes home after former leader dies

President Nicos Anastasiades has cut short his visit to Sri Lanka where he was attending the Commonwealth Summit and is returning to Cyprus to chair an emergency Cabinet meeting on Saturday to declare three days of official mourning after the death of former leader and veteran politician Glafcos Clerides.

Tributes have been pouring in from heads of government and leading politicians from around the world as they praise Clerides' dedication to resolving the Cyprus problem that has dogged the island for 50 years.

The European Popular Party, the biggest political group in the EU, of which the Democratic Rally (DISY) that Clerides founded in 1976, is a member, hailed the former president as a "true statesman" in personal character, as well as political clout. Clerides, who was president between 1993 and 2003, passed away at 18.20 local time, on Friday.

All parliamentary parties in Cyprus have sent messages of condolences, describing him as "a great leader" and praising his courage throughout the troubled decades that saw Cyprus fight for and gain independence from Britain in 1960, a flare-up of intercommunal troubles in 1963, the Turkish invasion and occupation of the north of the island in 1974 and the never-ending talks to reunite the island ever since.