WHITE PLAINS, United States (AFP) - Former US president Bill Clinton will attend the funeral of Shimon Peres, but will not be joined by Hillary Clinton as she campaigns in the final stretch of the White House race, her team said on Wednesday (Sept 28).
Clinton, who oversaw the signing of the Oslo Accords that envisioned an independent Palestinian state, paid tribute upon news of Peres' death to "a fervent advocate for peace and reconciliation and for a future where all the children of Abraham build a better tomorrow."
An adviser to Hillary Clinton said she would not join world leaders in Jerusalem on Friday as they pay their respects to the Nobel peace prize winner who died on Wednesday aged 93.
The Democrat was laid up several days earlier this month by a bout of pneumonia, and spent part of last week hunkered down with advisers prepping for her high-stakes debate against Donald Trump.
On Friday, she has a slew of campaign events planned in swing state Florida.
Her Republican opponent, Donald Trump, extended his condolences to the Israeli statesman's family in a public statement mourning his passing.
The Manhattan billionaire praised Peres as "a visible and highly effective patriarch" to the people of Israel, and as a leader "devoted" towards cultivating peace between Israelis and Arabs.
"He was a consummate statesman, a distinguished patriot and a friend of peace-loving people everywhere," Trump said in the statement.
"With his hand outstretched in peace and friendship, Shimon Peres personified dignity and grace in a region of the world where both run far too short. May he rest in peace."
