Senior Iranian leaders and foreign dignitaries gather in Tehran as multi-day ceremonies get underway….reports Asian Lite News Desk
Iran on Friday began state funeral ceremonies for Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei at Tehran’s Imam Khomeini Grand Mosalla, with senior Iranian officials, foreign dignitaries and religious leaders gathering to pay their final respects.
President Masoud Pezeshkian, Parliament Speaker Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf, Chief Justice Gholamhossein Mohseni Ejei, Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi and senior military commander Mohsen Rezaee were among the top Iranian leaders attending the ceremony.
India is also being represented at the funeral, with Minister of State for External Affairs Pabitra Margherita and Bihar Governor Lt. Gen. (Retd.) Syed Ata Hasnain travelling to Tehran as part of the official delegation. Separately, People’s Democratic Party (PDP) president Mehbooba Mufti, Congress leader Salman Khurshid and other Indian delegates also paid tribute to Khamenei ahead of the state funeral.
The Embassy of Iran in India shared images on X of Indian dignitaries paying their respects, describing Khamenei as the “Martyred Leader of Iran.”
Several world leaders and delegations have also arrived in Tehran for the funeral. According to Iranian state broadcaster Press TV, the ceremony is being attended by the Presidents of Georgia, Iraq and Tajikistan, Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Army Chief Asim Munir, along with delegations from China, Russia, Belarus, Oman, Lebanon, Palestine and other countries.
The families of senior Hezbollah leaders, including Hassan Nasrallah and Imad Mughniyeh, also attended the farewell ceremony.
Iranian authorities have put extensive security measures in place during the multi-day funeral amid heightened regional tensions. Officials said Mojtaba Khamenei, the son of the late Supreme Leader, would not attend the ceremonies because of security concerns.
Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi warned that any threat against Iran’s leadership would draw a strong response, while Maj. Gen. Ali Abdollahi, commander of the Khatam al-Anbiya Central Headquarters, cautioned adversaries against any hostile action during the mourning period.
Khamenei’s body was moved to the Grand Mosalla early Friday ahead of a two-day public farewell. Before the ceremonies began, President Pezeshkian urged Iranians from all communities to participate in large numbers as a show of national unity.
Iranian officials expect between 15 and 20 million mourners to take part in the funeral events. According to Press TV, the ceremonies will continue through the weekend before a funeral procession in Tehran on Monday. Further rites are scheduled in the holy city of Qom and in the Iraqi cities of Baghdad, Karbala and Najaf, before Khamenei is laid to rest in Mashhad on July 9.
