Edward Kennedy laid to rest

US: Senator Edward Kennedy, the liberal champion of the US Senate who carried on the political legacy of his slain brothers, was buried on Saturday after four days of emotional tributes.

The man who President Barack Obama called the "greatest legislator of our time" received final sendoffs in Boston and Washington, cities where the Irish-American patriarch of America's pre-eminent political family wielded his power.

After a funeral Mass in Boston where the US political elite packed a Roman Catholic church, Kennedy's flag-draped coffin was flown to Washington, where thousands lined the streets to see his motorcade make its way to Arlington National Cemetery. Two hundred invited guests gathered around his gravesite for final readings as darkness fell.

He was buried near the graves of President John F. Kennedy, assassinated in 1963, and Senator Robert Kennedy, who was killed while campaigning for President in 1968. A military honour guard gave a three-volley rifle salute in honour of the Democratic senator.

Washington, Sunday, Reuters