Ali Khamenei funeral: Thousands thronged Tehran on Sunday as Iranians braved heatwave conditions in the capital city to attend the funeral prayers of their slain former Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei at the expansive Imam Khomeini Grand Musalla, where Khamenei’s body has been lying in state since Saturday for public mourning and official farewell ceremonies.
Ali Khamenei’s sons, IRGC chief attend funeral prayers
Top Iranian officials and religious leaders, including Ali Khamenei’s sons, Masoud, Maisam, and Mustafa, along with Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) commander Ahmad Vahidi, attended the funeral prayers, though Khamenei’s son and successor, Mojtaba Khamenei, skipped the ceremony amid security concerns and the threat of a potential Israeli attack, the Associated Press reported.
Funeral prayers were also held for the four members of Ali Khamenei’s family who were assassinated in the joint US-Israeli strike on February 28, with Iranian state media reporting that “the capacity of the main courtyard of Mosalla was filled hours before the start of the congregational prayer”.
The Tehran Metro witnessed record-setting passenger traffic during the Ali Khamenei funeral, with official figures stating that more than 7 million trips were recorded between 5:30 p.m. Saturday and 7 a.m. Sunday, massive crowds thronged Tehran’s Imam Khomeini Mossalla to attend the ceremony, which will continue till 8 pm Sunday.
Will Mojtaba Khamenei attend Ali Khamenei funeral?
According to Iranian officials, Mojtaba Khamenei, Ali Khamenei’s son and Iran’s current Supreme Leader, will abstain from the ceremony due to security concerns and will not even shoulder his father’s casket, as is customary in Islamic tradition.
Earlier this week, Ayatollah Hakim Elahi, the Iran Supreme Leader’s representative in India, said Mojtaba Khamenei will not appear in public during the funeral of Ali Khamenei, though it remains unclear whether he will attend the ceremony away from public view.
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Elahi said Mojtaba Khamenei was eager to make a public appearance during the funeral, and lead the funeral ceremony with millions of mourners who are expected to attend the former Supreme Leader’s last rites, but was advised against it by Iranian security agencies.
Iran plans grand 3,000-km Ali Khamenei funeral
The funeral of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Iran’s former Supreme Leader, is shaping up to be an event like no other, with a nearly 3,000-kilometer-long funeral procession planned from Tehran to the holy city of Karbala, finally concluding in Khamenei’s native Mashhad, one of Iran’s holiest cities, where he will be laid to rest.
Public memorial services will be held in Tehran and Qom from July 5 to 7, before the procession crosses borders into neighbouring Iraq where it will head to the holy cities of Najaf and Karbala, and then back to Iran on July 9, when Khamenei will buried in his hometown of Mashhad.
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The funeral ceremonies began on July 3 with coffins of Ali Khamenei and his family members, including his 14-month-old granddaughter, Zahra, were put on display at the sprawling complex as Iranians draped in black, with mournful faces, came to pay their respects to the martyrs.
First published on: Jul 05, 2026 05:16 PM IST
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