Funeral Procession in Najaf Draws Thousands of Mourners
Funeral processions for Iran’s late Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei commenced Wednesday in the Iraqi city of Najaf, drawing thousands of mourners. The Islamic Republic’s dayslong funeral for Khamenei began Saturday, with authorities shutting down streets, airspace, and daily life in Tehran as mourners commemorate the life of the man who led Iran for decades. His body will later be taken from Najaf to the city of Karbala before being returned to Iran for final rites.
Body Arrives in Holy City Amid Escalating Tensions
The body of Khamenei arrived in Najaf on Tuesday, accompanied by Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, and other senior officials. They were welcomed by mourners holding portraits of the late supreme leader and performing self-flagellation on the streets. Khamenei’s body was in a casket draped in the Islamic Republic’s flag, encased in glass. Mourners waved flags of Iran as well as red and black flags symbolizing mourning and revenge.
“We the people of Iraq will remain a thorn in the eyes of the enemies,” said Jaafar Jawad, a participant in the funeral. “His arrival to us is the greatest possible honor, and God willing we will be loyal, and repay a little of his due in the holy city of Najaf.”
Prayers Led by Senior Scholars at Holy Shrines
The funeral prayers in Najaf will take place at the Shrine of Imam Ali, the Prophet Muhammad’s cousin and son-in-law, and will be led by Muhammad Taqi al-Hakim, a senior scholar at the Najaf seminary. In Karbala, another holy city for Shiite Muslims where Imam Hussein, the grandson of the Prophet, was killed in 680 AD, Abdul Mahdi al-Karbalaei, a representative of Iraq’s top Shiite religious authority, will lead the prayers at the Imam Hussein Shrine.
Khamenei Killed in US-Israeli Strikes; Successor in Hiding
Khamenei was killed in late February in wide-scale US and Israeli strikes on Iran. He was among several senior Iranian leaders killed in the strikes during the war. He was 86. Iran’s new supreme leader, Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei, has yet to appear in the funeral ceremonies, which are unfolding over several days. He is believed to be in hiding after reportedly being wounded in the airstrike that killed his father.
Talks on Hold as Strikes Continue in Persian Gulf
Talks between the United States and Iran appear to be on hold until after the burial. However, strikes from both sides in the Persian Gulf Tuesday and into Wednesday raised risks that the interim agreement to end the monthslong war could break down. The US military attacked Iran early Wednesday after it said Tehran struck three ships in the Strait of Hormuz, before Iran launched retaliatory strikes on Kuwait and Bahrain.
