Vice President Ansari in Afghanistan for Fahim's funeral

Vice President Hamid Ansari today arrived here to attend the funeral of Afghanistan's First Vice President Marshal Mohammad Qasim Fahim.
Ansari arrived here with a delegation which, in a unique gesture, included three former Ambassadors to Afghanistan - Vivek Katju, Rakesh Sood and Jayant Prasad.
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's special envoy Satinder Lambah was also part of the delegation.
Marshal Fahim, 56, died of natural causes on Sunday.
Condoling the death of the first Vice President of Afghanistan, Prime Minister Singh said Marshal Fahim was also a close friend of India and the country shall never forget his personal contribution to nurturing and strengthening the India-Afghanistan strategic partnership.

Marshal Fahim, who was a close lieutenant of the legendary commander Ahmad Shah Masood, visited India in 2011 at the invitation of the Vice President.