Iranian leaders, foreign officials pay respects to Khamenei ahead of grand funeral

Iran Begins Week-Long Funeral Rites for Slain Supreme Leader Khamenei

TEHRAN — Iran began a week of funeral ceremonies on Friday for Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who was killed in a US-Israeli strike in late February. Top Iranian officials and foreign delegations converged on Tehran, where his body lies in state, as authorities prepared for public mourning expected to draw millions, according to multiple reports.

Khamenei's coffin, draped in the colors of the Islamic republic, was displayed at the Grand Mosalla religious complex in Tehran. State TV broadcast Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian paying his respects alongside parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf and chief negotiator, according to Deutsche Welle. Ahmad Vahidi, head of the Revolutionary Guards, made his first public appearance since the war began, the same report noted.

Foreign dignitaries began arriving ahead of the ceremonies. Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, Russian former president Dmitry Medvedev, and the foreign minister of Afghanistan's Taliban government paid their respects, Deutsche Welle reported. Official representatives from China, Belarus, Iraq, Turkmenistan, and an Indian delegation also landed in Tehran, according to France 24, which cited Iranian state television footage.

Representatives from around 30 countries were expected to attend, with China and Iran's neighbors in the Caucasus region among those sending delegations, Deutsche Welle reported. France 24 noted that official mourning ceremonies were set to begin Saturday and end Monday, with millions of Iranians expected to participate.

Khamenei's coffin has been laid out at the Grand Mosalla Mosque. It will be taken to Qom, a holy city for Shiite Muslims, and to Iraq before burial in his hometown of Mashhad on Thursday, France 24 reported. Iran's airspace and many streets in cities where the coffin will be displayed will be shut for several days for security reasons, according to the same outlet.

Tens of thousands gathered at the Grand Mosalla complex on Saturday to bid farewell, France 24 reported. The outlet also said Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi met with envoys from Hezbollah and Hamas, groups that Tehran has long supported and which the United States and other Western nations designate as terrorist organizations. The Hezbollah delegation was headed by senior official Mohammed Fneish; Hamas's delegation was led by Mohammed Darwish, head of its political bureau, according to statements cited by France 24. Also attending were Ziyad al-Nakhalah, leader of Islamic Jihad, and senior Houthi member Dhaif Allah al-Shami, state TV reported.

Jerusalem Post offered an analytical perspective, noting that while Iran had indicated it would host "dozens" of world leaders, attendance appeared to consist largely of deputies and ministers rather than heads of state. The outlet observed that delegations came from countries in the Middle East and Asia, reflecting what it described as Iran's position becoming more isolated in recent years. It highlighted that Central Asian countries such as Tajikistan and Turkmenistan sent delegations, with Tajikistan's President Emomali Rahmon expressing condolences and Turkmenistan's former president Gurbanguly Berdymukhamedov attending. Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei said at least eight heads of government or state and parliamentary speakers from 12 countries would attend, Jerusalem Post reported, citing Euro News.

Jerusalem Post also reported that the new Supreme Leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, has not been seen in public and is believed to be wounded from the same attacks that killed his father — a claim carried by a single outlet. The funeral ceremonies continue as Iran's leadership navigates the aftermath of the strike that reshaped the country's political landscape.