Iran begins funeral procession for Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei

Iran begins funeral procession for Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei

Iran began a procession through Tehran on Monday for the funeral of the late Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. The 86-year-old leader and members of his family were killed on February 28 in an airstrike conducted by Israel and the United States at the start of the war.

Khamenei's flag-draped coffin, along with those of his family, was carried on a truck decorated to resemble the ornamental grating of an imam's shrine. The vehicle moved slowly through crowds of black-clad mourners who reached out to touch the grating or threw scarves against it as a blessing. Revolutionary Guard Gen. Hasan Hasanzsdeh, who is overseeing the event, said the journey through the streets of Tehran to Mehrabad International Airport would take 12 hours.

The multi-day mourning period began Saturday, with events at the Grand Mosalla religious complex. Authorities shut down airspace, streets, and daily life for the ceremonies. To manage crowds in temperatures expected to reach 100 degrees, volunteers sprayed misted water on attendees. Iranian officials expect between 15 and 20 million people to participate, which would make it the largest state funeral in the history of the country.

The event has been marked by intense calls for vengeance. Mourners carried red flags, a Shiite symbol of revenge, and chanted revenge, revenge. Signs and graffiti called for the deaths of U.S. President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. At the Monday procession, an effigy of Trump was hanged. A poet, Mohammad Rasouli, asked a crowd via loudspeakers, Why is the most bastard man in the world still alive? referring to Trump.

The ceremonies have also highlighted the absence of the new supreme leader, Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei. While three of Ali Khamenei's sons—Mostafa, Masoud, and Meysam—made public appearances on Sunday, Mojtaba has not appeared in public since the war began. Officials stated he was wounded in the February airstrike, though the severity of those injuries is unclear. He has communicated only through written statements.

The funeral coincides with high-stakes diplomatic tension. The U.S. Is attempting to negotiate a permanent end to the war, a rollback of Iran's nuclear program, and the full reopening of the Strait of Hormuz. These talks appear to be on hold until after the burial. President Trump, speaking at Mount Rushmore on the eve of July 4, stated, We knocked the hell out of Iran, they're dying to settle and claimed the U.S. Gave Iran a week off for the funeral.

Conflict remains centered on the Strait of Hormuz, through which 20% of the world's oil supply travels. While a 60-day pause on transit fees is currently in place, Iranian Ambassador Abdolreza Rahmani Fazli told the World Peace Forum in Beijing that Iran will charge service fees once that period expires. This plan has been rejected by the U.S. Additionally, Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi issued a serious warning to France and the U.K. After those nations pledged to help Oman ensure the waterway remains safe for navigation.

Elsewhere in the region, the Lebanese Ministry of Public Health reported that 4,303 people have been killed in Israeli strikes since March 2. While a ceasefire deal was signed in late June, Hezbollah has rejected the agreement. Israel's military chief, Lieutenant General Eyal Zamir, recently vowed to continue operations to remove Hezbollah threats from Lebanese territory, specifically citing the strategic importance of the Beaufort castle seized in June.

The funeral sequence continues with events in the clerical hub of Qom on Tuesday and in Iraq on Wednesday. The process will culminate on Thursday, when Ali Khamenei is buried at the Imam Reza shrine in his birthplace of Mashhad.