Iran initiated state mourning activities for Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who was killed during a U.S.-Israeli operation on February 28, which also resulted in the deaths of several Iranian officials. The official funeral proceedings commenced four months after these events.
The funeral drew supporters of the regime, who expressed aggressive militaristic rhetoric. During the ceremony, Iranian poet Mohammad Rasouli recited a government-sanctioned poem that accused former U.S. President Donald Trump of orchestrating the attack. Rasouli questioned, “Why is the world’s greatest villain still alive? The world is no longer a place for Trump,” eliciting cheers from the audience waving red flags.
Security was extraordinarily tight during the funeral, which took place amid a fragile ceasefire between Tehran and Washington. For the first time since the onset of the conflict, Iran’s military leadership, including Quds Force commander Esmail Qaani, attended the ceremony. Authorities have implemented unprecedented protective measures for the newly appointed Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei, the son of the deceased Ayatollah, who has not made a public appearance since the bombing due to injuries and missed the funerals of his wife and child.
According to Iranian officials, over 2 million people filled the mosque and surrounding streets during the first day of mourning. Despite ongoing economic turmoil, Khamenei’s supporters traveled from across the country, some sleeping on school floors. Journalists have reported a significant cultural and socioeconomic divide in Iranian society, as the local middle class in northern Tehran largely ignored the mourning, with women seen in restaurants without hijabs.
Khamenei’s coffin is scheduled to be taken through religious sites in Iraq before ultimately being laid to rest in his hometown of Mashhad.
Context
- On February 28, under a joint operation by the U.S. and Israel against Iran, Israeli fighter jets dropped dozens of bombs on Khamenei’s residence, killing him and several government officials.
- The publication “GORDON” has provided insights on Mojtaba Khamenei, who has recently become Iran’s new leader.
