Months after former Iranian supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was killed, mourners are holding a burial for the leader and a dayslong funeral. Khamenei's remains arrived in Tehran today for the mega ceremonies planned in at least five cities across Iran and Iraq. His remains will be carried across cities in Iran and neighbouring Iraq.
Khamenei was killed on February 28, when the US and Israel jointly launched a war against Iran. Government officials said the funeral on Saturday, which was delayed due to the raging war, is expected to draw millions of people, including a list of foreign dignitaries.
Preparations for Khamenei's public funeral are taking place in Tehran, following which his remains will be taken to the Iraqi holy cities of Najaf and Karbala. He will then be buried on July 9 at the shrine of Imam Reza in the northeastern Iranian city of Mashhad, his birthplace. The ceremonies came as Iran and the US observe a fragile ceasefire after signing a preliminary deal to stop the war.
Here Are The Live Updates Of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei's Funeral In Iran
Khamenei Funeral Updates: Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) chief Mehbooba Mufti Reaches Tehran
An honour for me to be here in Tehran to express my deepest condolences & solidarity on the martyrdom of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Sayyed Ali Khamenei- a revered leader who dared to stand against the tide & fought for the oppressed. pic.twitter.com/dyfRbNXhsr
— Mehbooba Mufti (@MehboobaMufti) July 3, 2026
Ayatollah Ali Khamenei Funeral LIVE: Iranian Leaders Pay Respects To Supreme Leader As Tehran Prepares For Funeral
Iranian leaders began paying their respects on Friday before the coffin of the country's late supreme leader Ali Khamenei, killed in the US-Israeli strikes that triggered the Middle East war, as Tehran prepared for a vast funeral.
Khamenei's body arrived at Tehran's Grand Mosalla on Friday ahead of ceremonies which are expected to draw millions.
A coterie of foreign dignitaries is also due to attend Saturday's official ceremony, with Tehran's chief negotiator calling for a massive turnout to avenge his death.
- AFP
Ali Khamenei Funeral Last Rites: Iran President Pays Respects At Khamenei's Remains: State TV
Iran president pays respects at Khamenei's remains: state TV
Ali Khamenei Funeral Last Rites: Iran's Slain Leader Khamenei Laid in State in Tehran for Week of Mass Funeral Events
The body of Iran's slain Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was lying in state in a vast hall in Tehran on Friday as clerics, officials, foreign dignitaries and other mourners paid their respects after his 37-year rule.
Iran is staging a week of mass funeral processions for Khamenei - killed in February by U.S. and Israeli airstrikes at the start of a four-month war - in a show of public devotion to the Islamic Republic's theocratic state and revolutionary fire.
Khamenei's body was expected to be taken to Qom, Najaf and Kerbala, the great Shi'ite centres of Iran and Iraq, before being laid to rest on Thursday in Mashhad, home to the country's holiest pilgrim shrine.
- Reuters
Ali Khamenei Funeral Last Rites: Iran Prepares For Dayslong Funeral For Late Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei
Iran prepared Friday for the dayslong funeral of the late Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, with banners across Tehran urging the public to rise up in support of the Islamic Republic after the devastating war that killed the 86-year-old cleric.
The country's theocracy plans to see millions flood the streets of the capital beginning Saturday in scenes reminiscent to the burial of the late Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini in 1989.
That could provide a boost for Iran's government, particularly as it tries to leverage its hold on the Strait of Hormuz in negotiations with the United States over a permanent end to the war, and as concern still lingers that Israel could attack yet again.
Despite that, a powerful general who leads Iran's paramilitary Revolutionary Guard emerged publicly for the first time in months for the funeral. Other top government officials likely will be on hand alongside foreign dignitaries as well in show of strength of Iran.
"As long as these people, who are chosen (by God), are on the field, we will definitely continue the same 'no to humiliation' policy that was founded by the Islamic Republic," said Mohammad Hossein Rezaei, a volunteer preparing for the funeral Friday.
- AP
