Millions of mourners gathered in Tehran on Monday for the funeral procession of Iran's assassinated supreme leader, Ali Khamenei, who was killed by Israeli bombs in February. The crowd, estimated by state media in the millions, moved from Revolution Square to Azadi Square, following two days of funeral ceremonies at the Grand Mosalla mosque for Khamenei and members of his family.
Mourners dressed in black carried flags bearing the slogan "We will rise," along with pictures of Khamenei and the Iranian flag. The Tehran metro was packed as people attempted to join the march, chanting: "Mourning is mourning today, mourning day is today. Martyr Khamenei is before God today." The funeral procession was expected to last 10 to 12 hours.
Extraordinary Turnaround After Protests
The scale of the march represents a significant shift for a country that only seven months earlier was gripped by street protests in which thousands were killed by government security forces. Many observers say the assembly was a response to what they view as a misconceived war launched on Iran by former US President Donald Trump in February.
On Sunday, the entire Iranian leadership, depleted by successive Israeli assassinations, attended the funeral prayer, with the exception of the new supreme leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, son of the late leader and his appointed successor. Iranian officials said his absence was due to security concerns, not injuries sustained in Israel's attack on the presidential building.
President Pezeshkian Addresses Crowds
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian praised the mourners' behaviour and rejected claims by Trump that the grief was "fake tears." Pezeshkian said: "This greatness, these tears that flow from the eyes of girls, men, and children, is not something that can be created by order. Tears arise from the pain and sorrow that surges within a person, and the world sees this truth."
Pezeshkian, a reformist elected two years ago focused on building consensus within Iran's political elite, added: "I do not accept the interpretation of farewell. It is a covenant for continuing on the path. This is not actually a farewell but rather a pact to continue on the path." He accused Israel of perpetrating "all the crimes that are taking place in the region … with the support of the United States and European countries."
Foreign Media and Organizational Feat
More than 300 foreign journalists, in addition to foreign reporters based in Iran, were granted rare visas to cover the funeral and the display of national cohesion. State authorities and the volunteer civic army organized the event, providing food and housing for mourners, and ensuring no one was killed—unlike previous state funerals that descended into chaos.
