Iran Holds Six-Day Funeral For Ali Khamenei Under Heavy Security, Trump Pauses Talks

Iran began six days of funeral ceremonies for late Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei under heavy security, while the absence of his son and successor, Mojtaba Khamenei, became one of the biggest unanswered questions surrounding the event.

In Beijing, Iranian Ambassador Abdolreza Rahmani Fazli told the World Peace Forum that Tehran was working in "collaboration and cooperation" with Oman on "new arrangements" for the Strait of Hormuz, and he said, "As a country where the Hormuz is part of its territorial waters, we will definitely charge service fees."

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The same Strait of Hormuz dispute is tied to diplomacy, with an interim deal set out that commercial ships would transit the strait free of charge for 60 days, while it remains unclear what would happen after that period.

U.S. President Donald Trump said he had effectively given Iran "a week off" from negotiations because of the funeral ceremonies for Ali Khamenei, and he said the latest indirect talks were held in Doha, Qatar, on July 1.

The Reuters report referenced by RFE/RL said the talks were technical in nature, and the article also noted that Iranian authorities organized six days of funeral ceremonies for Khamenei in several cities.

Pakistan is set to host the next round of U.S.-Iran negotiations on July 11, according to Al Arabiya as cited by Global Times, with the report saying the talks would cover sanctions, Iranian assets frozen abroad, and nuclear issues.

The same reporting said the composition of Iran’s delegation would be determined after the conclusion of funeral ceremonies for Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, linking the diplomacy timetable to the six-day mourning period.

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In a separate account, Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said on X that "Pakistan will continue its efforts to achieve peace with sincerity, and we hope to host the next round of talks very soon."

Axios, as cited in the Kingdom’s coverage, reported that the United States and Iran were close to signing an agreement that would extend the ceasefire for 60 days and reopen the Hormuz Strait to navigation without transit fees.

The BBC also framed the negotiations as incomplete, quoting Trump’s Truth Social post that negotiations on the Iran deal "have not yet been completed in full."

From New Delhi, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said there is "a possibility that the world will hear good news in the coming hours, especially regarding the Hormuz Strait," and he added that the United States made progress in the last 48 hours on broad outlines that might resolve the Hormuz crisis.

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In Tehran, Iranian President Masoud Bezhkian said, "We are ready to reassure the world that we are not seeking to possess a nuclear weapon or destabilize the region," and he accused Israel of destabilizing regional security through its attempt to implement the Greater Israel plan.

Pakistan’s Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar said there has been "a major advance" in the negotiations between the United States and Iran, and he said it bodes well for a positive and lasting result.

Israel expressed unease about the deal, with Channel 12 quoting a senior Israeli official saying that "the ongoing deal being formed with Iran is bad because it sends a message to the Iranians that they have a weapon as effective as a nuclear one, namely the Hormuz Strait."

The same coverage described Iranian media provisions for a memorandum of understanding, including that the draft would allocate 30 days for Hormoz-related steps and 60 days for nuclear talks, and it said the number of vessels able to pass through the Hormuz Strait would return to pre-war levels within 30 days.