File Photo: King Abdullah. (Reuters)
More foreign leaders flocked to Saudi Arabia paying their respects to King Salman on Sunday, as the normally gridlocked streets of Riyadh turned quiet during a day of mourning for his predecessor Abdullah.
The latest arrivals included Japan's Crown Prince Naruhito, Iraqi Kurdish leader Massud Barzani, Belgium's King Philippe, Libya's internationally-recognised Prime Minister Abdullah al-Thani, and President Nicolas Maduro of Venezuela.
From across the Arab and Muslim worlds, from Europe, Asia, and America, presidents, prime ministers and sheikhs have flown in to express condolences.
It is a recognition of the Islamic kingdom's power as the world's leading oil exporter, a political heavyweight in a region threatened by extremist violence, and as home to Islam's holiest sites.
King Salman, 79, acceded to the throne on Friday after Abdullah's death at the age of about 90.
US President Barack Obama announced he would cut short a visit to India to travel to the kingdom on Tuesday.
Saudi Arabia has long been a key United States ally and since last year has been part of the US-led coalition carrying out air strikes against the Islamic State jihadist group.
Salman, a half-brother of Abdullah who reigned for almost a decade, declared Sunday a nationwide holiday "to provide comfort and facilitation to all citizens in offering condolences" and allegiance to the new monarch, the official Saudi Press Agency said.