World leaders mourned the death of Pope John Paul II.
United States President George W Bush and wife Laura paid tribute to the Pope saying his death meant "the Catholic
Church has lost its shepherd, the world has lost a champion of human freedom, and a good and faithful servant of God has been called home."
UN Secretary General Kofi Annan said he was "deeply saddened" by the 84-year-old pontiff's passing.
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"Quite apart from his role as a spiritual guide to more than a billion men, women and children, he was a tireless
advocate of peace, a true pioneer in interfaith dialogue and a strong force for critical self-evaluation by the Church
itself."
British Prime Minister Tony Blair said the world had lost a leader who was revered by Catholics and non-Catholics alike.
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"The world has lost a religious leader who was revered across people of all faiths and none," Blair said in a statement released by his office in London.
Cuba's Communist government said it would order a three-day period of mourning, an unusual gesture of respect for a Roman Catholic leader whose 1998 visit to the country helped thaw relations between church and state.
President Fidel Castro ordered all celebrations suspended and described the pontiff as "a personality with worldwide reach" and an "indefatigable fighter for peace."
Israel, which the Pope visited in 2000, praised John Paul II's work to promote understanding among peoples.
"Israel, the Jewish people and the entire world, lost today a great champion of reconciliation and brotherhood
between the faiths," Foreign Minister Silvan Shalom said.
Palestinians were also saddened by the death of John Paul II. "A great man who left his mark all over the world has
departed," said Tayeb Abdel Rahim, secretary general of the Palestinian Authority.
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Italy's President Carlo Azeglio Ciampi said that Italians were mourning "the loss of a father".
"The pope will be remembered as one of those men of freedom and justice," said Ciampi in a televised address to
the nation.
The Commonwealth also mourned the passing away of the pontiff, saying the world had lost a "towering figure in a troubled world" following the death of Pope John Paul II.
"It is with great sadness that I have heard the news of the death of Pope John Paul II," Commonwealth
Secretary-General Don McKinnon said in a statement.
"The world has lost a true friend. One of the most respected religious leaders of our time, he was a towering
figure in our troubled world," McKinnon said.
South Korean President Roh Moo-Hyun called him an "apostle of peace" for the world.
Spain expressed "profound grief" in a message sent to the Vatican.
Spanish Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero said the demise of the pontiff "represents the loss of one of the most towering world figures in recent history."
Australian Prime Minister John Howard hailed the late Pope as a great moral, religious and political figure.
German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder said the Pope had "changed our world" and played a major role in the development of a peaceful Europe.
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