Iran began a dayslong funeral Saturday for its late Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, months after an airstrike killed him at the start of the war. He was 86.
Authorities unveiled Khamenei’s casket in a glass case at the Grand Mosalla in Tehran, where mourners wept and chanted for revenge. Billboards across the city bore his image, and crowds engaged in traditional Shiite mourning practices.
The funeral’s setting at the Grand Mosalla resembled a stage where Khamenei previously gave speeches. That site was destroyed in the Israeli airstrike on February 28 that killed Khamenei and some family members, marking the beginning of the Iran war.
Iranian officials expect millions to attend the funeral, drawing parallels to the 1989 burial of Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini. The government is facing concurrent negotiations with the United States over a permanent end to the war and ongoing concerns about potential Israeli attacks.
Iran chose July 4, the 250th anniversary of the U.S. founding, to commence the funeral. Chants of “Death to America!” echoed in Tehran, a reprisal of slogans common since the 1979 Islamic Revolution. Meanwhile, U.S. President Donald Trump, speaking at an event in South Dakota, stated, “We gave them a week off for a funeral.” Mourners in Tehran were seen holding a flag with the hashtag #KillTrump.
Khamenei’s body is scheduled to be transported to cities within Iran and to neighboring Iraq. Tehran has experienced street closures, airspace restrictions, and disruptions to daily life for the mourning period.
It remains uncertain if Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei, the late leader's son and potential successor, will attend the funeral. His late wife was among those killed in the airstrike displayed at the Grand Mosalla. Iran’s joint military command issued a warning to Israel and the U.S. on Thursday, urging them to “avoid any miscalculation” during the funeral proceedings, particularly amid Israeli threats against Mojtaba Khamenei.