Jordanians are mourning the loss of King Hussein bin Talal, who died Sunday after a long battle with cancer. His eldest son, Abdullah, was formally sworn in as king in parliament hours after his father's death. In Amman, mosque loudspeakers are sounding Koranic verses in a sign of mourning.
People hurry, sobbing, through rain-soaked streets.
Parliamentarians gathered at 2.30 p.m. local time for the swearing-in session. Jordanian TV displayed a portrait of the king draped with a Jordanian flag. Jordanian time, in his bed at the King Hussein Medical Center. Jordan's Cabinet immediately met and proclaimed Crown Prince Abdullah king, a day after he was named regent. The king became a key force for stability in the turbulent Middle East in more than four decades as ruler of his strategically placed nation, died Sunday at 63.