Body of "Blind Sheikh" arrives in Egypt for burial

The body of Omar Abdel-Rahman, the so-called "Blind Sheikh" who died in prison in the United States on Saturday, arrived at Cairo International Airport Wednesday and was handed over to his family for burial, state-run Ahram Online website reported.

The report said special security procedures were put in place to receive the body of the 78-year-old cleric.

His family said the funeral will be held at the sheikh's birthplace in the Nile Delta governorate of Daqahliya.

Abdel-Rahman died on Saturday at a prison in the United States, where he was serving a life sentence over several terrorist charges, including the 1993 bombing of New York's World Trade Center.

As symbolic and spiritual leader of jihadists, he was the founder of the extremist Al-Jamaa al-Islamiya (Islamic Group) , which was suspected to be responsible for many acts of violence such as the 1997 massacre that killed 62 in Egypt's Luxor.

The news of his burial in Egypt has stirred controversies. While his family and supporters advocate burying sheikh's body in his hometown to respect his will, a hashtag "Omar Abdel-Rahman not to bury in Egypt" has trended with 14,000 tweets only one hour after its launch on Sunday.

Source: Xinhua