Dayslong funeral for slain Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei begins in Tehran

Key developments are emerging from the global stage. Middle East Dayslong funeral for slain Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei begins in Tehran Updated July 4, 20269:04 AM ET Originally published July 4, 20261:04 AM ET Hadeel Al-Shalchi A crowd attends the start of the dayslong funeral ceremonies at the Imam Khomeini Mosalla Grand Mosque in Tehran, Iran, Saturday, July 4, 2026. Altaf Qadri/AP hide caption toggle caption Altaf Qadri/AP ISTANBUL – Four months after Iran's Supreme Leader was killed in U. -Israeli airstrikes, the country is holding his funeral.

Middle East conflict What you need to know about the preliminary U. -Iran agreement signed by Trump Iranian state media showed huge crowds at the Imam Khomeini Grand Mosalla - a large prayer complex in Tehran - visiting the casket of Ayatollah's Ali Khamenei, who was killed on Feb. 28 at the start of the U.

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-Israel war against Iran. The caskets of four of his killed family members were also on display. Men and women in the crowd wore black and wept openly.

Women slapped their heads with their hands in mourning, while men beat their chests in unison, a tradition observed at Shia funerals. There were chants of "Death to America" and big red signs that read "#KillTrump. " Some people waved flags, including red ones that symbolize revenge and many yellow ones that represented the Iranian-backed Lebanese militia Hezbollah.

Hezbollah and Israel have been fighting since the beginning of the war. Sponsor Message A spokesperson for the funeral preparations issued a statement saying that the ceremonies were delayed this long because of "the war conditions" and "the brutal US invasion. " The funeral is one way the Iranian regime is trying to show stability and power to Iranians and the world, sending a message that the Islamic revolutionary power that leads the country still enjoys popularity.

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World Leaders Iranian religious leaders and other mourners pay their respects before the coffins of slain Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and members of his family during a viewing ceremony ahead of the dayslong funeral ceremonies at the Imam Khomeini Mosalla Grand Mosque in Tehran, Iran, Friday, July 3, 2026. Vahid Salemi/AP hide caption toggle caption Vahid Salemi/AP On Friday, a number of official foreign delegations and religious leaders attended a ceremony as Khamenei lay in state. Russia, which has supported Iran during the war and has received drones from Iran for its war in Ukraine, sent former president Dmitry Medvedev.

Pakistan sent its Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif. Other foreign attendees included the president of Iraq, the Afghan foreign minister and a delegation from Hamas. Saudi Arabia, which has been at odds with Iran for decades – and where Iran attacked a U.

military base in March, sent a delegation. The Iranian president, Masoud Pezeshkian, and the speaker of parliament, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, who has led the ceasefire negotiating team with the U. , were seen praying near the caskets.

The story has become one of the most prominent items on the global agenda.