At 6 a.m. on Thursday, a ceremony begins at Ba Dinh Square in Hanoi where the national flag is flown at half-mast, marking the beginning of a two-day state funeral for Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong.

During the state funeral, institutions, offices in the country and Vietnamese representative units abroad also flew flags at half-mast, and public entertainment activities were suspended.

Photo by Giang Huy