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Khamenei buried in Mashhad
Iran laid to rest former Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei in his hometown of Mashhad, with Iranian media reporting millions of mourners gathered to pray and demand vengeance for his assassination by the US and Israel in February.
“In Pictures Braving sweltering heat and calling for revenge, Iranians have massed for the burial of slain Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei in his hometown of Mashhad”
The funeral procession in Mashhad concluded at 10:00 PM on Thursday at the Razavi Shrine for funeral prayers led by Khamenei’s eldest son, Hojjatoleslam Seyyed Mostafa Hosseini Khamenei, according to IRNA news agency.
Mourners chanted "Death to America," "Death to Israel," and "Death to the opponents of Velayat-e Faqih (Guardianship of the Islamic Jurist)" during the procession, while also waving red flags as the cortege moved through the streets, IRNA added.
The burial was the final act in a marathon six days of funeral ceremonies, and a helicopter transported the body across the final stretch to the shrine because the main avenue was expected to be crammed with people.
Khamenei was buried with his infant granddaughter, son-in-law, daughter and Mojtaba Khamenei's wife Zahra Haddad Adel, who were all killed in the US-Israeli attack on February 28, the first day of the US-Israeli war on Iran.
Crowds reject compromise
As Khamenei’s coffin moved through Mashhad, mourners chanted slogans against compromise and US President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, with AFP correspondents describing men in black shirts and women in black chadors.
AFP correspondents said the crowd carried a massive banner which read "hey Trump we will kill you" written in English, and Hoda, 35, told AFP, "Only the death of Trump and Netanyahu will soothe our pain."
The New York Post described banners vowing revenge against President Trump on full display during the burial ceremony on Thursday, and it said one placard read, “WE WILL KILL TRUMP.”
The Arab Weekly reported that crowds chanted slogans demanding revenge on Trump, including “I swear by the blood of the Supreme Leader, Trump, we will kill you!”
While the funeral drew large crowds, multiple outlets also highlighted that Mojtaba Khamenei remained hidden from public view after being disfigured in the strike that killed his father.
Funeral ends amid war
The burial came as new hostilities broke out with the United States even after a Pakistan-mediated accord last month to end the war, and TRT World reported at least one fighter jet escorted the plane carrying the late Iranian leader's coffin to Mashhad.
“The funeral rites for the late Supreme Leader of Iran, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, continued today in the two cities of Najaf and Karbala, as Iraq declared an official public holiday”
TRT World also said Iran quickly hit back by exerting control over the Strait of Hormuz, raining missiles and drones on US-allied Gulf Arab monarchies, and it linked the escalation to the assassination and the February 28 US-Israeli attack.
In parallel, Al Jazeera reported that Khamenei’s funeral in Mashhad was the final act in a marathon six days of funeral ceremonies that had allowed people to pay tribute in Tehran, the clerical hub of Qom and also Iraq.
Al Jazeera said Mashhad Governor Hassan Hosseini was quoted on Iranian state television as saying he “expects 15 million people” to attend Khamenei’s funeral, and it described water sprinklers used as temperatures hit 35 degrees Celsius (95 Fahrenheit).
BBC coverage of the wider funeral sequence said the funeral rites continued in Najaf and Karbala as Iraq declared an official public holiday, with the mass funeral in Najaf beginning at 6:00 a.m. GMT.
