A funeral procession for Ayatollah Ali Khamenei that took place on July 4th. Photo: Atta Kenare/AFP.
The six-day state funeral spanning Iran and Iraq is expected to draw more than 30 million mourners.
Massive crowds gathered in Tehran on 4 July for the farewell ceremony of slain Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, who was killed on the first day of the US-Israeli war on the Islamic Republic.
Waving Iranian flags and carrying portraits of Khamenei, Iranians filled Tehran’s Imam Khomeini Grand Mosalla and the surrounding streets, chanting slogans demanding justice for his killing.
Iranian media described the massive turnout as a “renewal of allegiance to the ideals of the Islamic Revolution, Islam, and the martyrs, symbolizing the nation’s commitment to dignity, independence, and resistance.”
On the streets around the mosque, men distributed posters reading: “We are the revenge seekers of Ali Khamenei.”
VIDEO | More than 10 million mourners expected in Tehran according to IRNA, with Iranian officials estimating that attendance over the six-day funeral period could exceed 20 million. pic.twitter.com/RDCK5E8VIX
— The Cradle (@TheCradleMedia) July 4, 2026
The main funeral procession is scheduled for Monday in Tehran.
A funeral ceremony will also be held in the Shia holy city of Qom on Tuesday, before Khamenei’s body is transported to Iraq for ceremonies in the holy cities of Najaf and Karbala on Wednesday.
A final funeral ceremony will be held in the Iranian city of Mashhad on Thursday, where the Supreme Leader will be buried at the Imam Reza Shrine.
As many as 30 million people may attend the six days of ceremonies across Iran and Iraq.
Speaker of the Iranian Parliament, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, called on “all the people of Iran to write a glorious page in the history of Islamic Iran through their massive participation,” emphasizing that “the nation’s call for revenge must resonate throughout the world.”
On Friday, heads of state, dignitaries, and religious leaders arrived in Tehran to pay their respects to Khamenei, who became Supreme Leader after Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini’s death in 1989.
Officials from 100 countries, including Russia, China, India, Pakistan, and Turkiye attended, as well as delegations from Hezbollah, Hamas, the Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ), Ansarallah, and Iraq’s Kataib Hezbollah and Harakat al-Nujaba movements.
VIDEO | Delegations from Hamas, the Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ), and the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) took part in the funeral ceremonies for the late Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei. pic.twitter.com/sQ4LAE7gdK
— The Cradle (@TheCradleMedia) July 3, 2026
Following Khamenei’s death in an Israeli airstrike on 28 February, his son, Mojtaba Khamenei, was named his successor as Supreme Leader.
Mojtaba was seriously injured in the same attack and has not appeared publicly since. However, he has provided written instructions to Iranian negotiators meeting with US counterparts to negotiate a peace deal.
The Wisdom Behind Martyr Ali Khamenei’s Refusal of Nuclear Weapons
The two sides signed a memorandum of understanding on 15 June that calls for a 60-day negotiating period amid a shaky peace.
It is not clear if Mojtaba will attend his father’s funeral amid concerns Israel would try to assassinate him.
Khamenei’s 14-month-old granddaughter, Zahra Mohammadi Golpayegani, was also killed in the Israeli strike, as were other family members.
A separate US strike on an elementary school in the city of Minab in southern Iran on the same day killed at least 168 people, including 120 children.
Iran has begun funeral processions for former Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, with seven days of ceremonies set to begin in Tehran.
His coffin will travel across the country before his burial in his hometown of Mashhad on July 9. pic.twitter.com/QRxhQ91omB
— Al Jazeera English (@AJEnglish) July 3, 2026
