Iran’s leadership bids farewell to Khamenei as massive crowds gather for week-long funeral rites
Iran’s political and military hierarchy converged on Tehran on Friday to honor Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, with the first of a week's worth of funeral ceremonies underway. The 86-year-old cleric, who led the Islamic Republic for more than three decades, was killed at his compound in February during what Iranian officials describe as the opening salvo of a U.S.-Israeli offensive that ignited the current Middle East war.
State television showed President Masoud Pezeshkian, parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, and chief nuclear negotiator Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf approaching the casket at the vast Grand Mosalla complex, where Khamenei’s body — draped in the green, white and red of Iran’s national flag — lay in state. Ahmad Vahidi, the head of the Revolutionary Guards, made his first public appearance since the conflict began, signaling the regime’s attempt to project unity in a moment of profound crisis.
International delegations began arriving, including Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, a key mediator between Tehran and Washington; former Russian president Dmitry Medvedev; and the Taliban’s foreign minister. Representatives from Hamas, Hezbollah, and some 30 other nations — including China and several Caucasus states — were expected to attend the final burial in Mashhad next week. The presence of Khamenei’s son and successor, Mojtaba, who has not appeared in public since assuming the role of supreme leader, remains unconfirmed.
The ceremonies have become a vast public spectacle, with authorities calling for “millions” to participate. Ghalibaf urged Iranians to “write a glorious page in the history of Islamic Iran” and said an international “call for vengeance” must echo across the world. Security has been heavily reinforced: portraits of Khamenei line the walls of the Grand Mosalla, and a nearby park has been transformed into a Red Crescent tent camp. Tankers will spray water along the funeral procession route on Azadi Avenue to cool the expected crowds.
Tehran’s airspace will be partially closed from Friday and fully shut Monday, when the main procession is scheduled. Public offices and schools are closed from Saturday through Monday. The city, normally choked with traffic, was described by residents as eerily quiet, with many locals leaving for the north to avoid the gathering. “Staying in the city has become really difficult,” said Saeid, a 29-year-old tech worker who joined the exodus.
The funeral, while an expression of national grief, also exposes the deep fractures within Iran’s leadership. The killing of Khamenei — a figure who held absolute authority for decades — has left a power vacuum that his son Mojtaba has yet to fill publicly. Analysts note that the regime is using the ceremonies to project strength and command loyalty, but the simultaneous evacuation of many Tehran residents suggests a city on edge. The involvement of foreign mediators like Pakistan and Russia underscores the war’s regional stakes. How the succession unfolds and whether the “vengeance” rhetoric translates into actual military escalation will shape Iran’s trajectory in the months ahead.
The body of Khamenei, along with that of his three-year-old granddaughter who also died in the initial strike, will lie in state for three days in Tehran before being transported to the Iraqi holy cities of Najaf and Karbala. The final burial is set for July 9 at the shrine of Imam Reza in Mashhad, Khamenei’s birthplace.