Folks cross the road previous a big billboard displaying portraits of Iran’s late supreme chief, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini (L) and slain supreme chief Ayatollah Ali Khamenei (R) in central Tehran on June 8, 2026.
Atta Kenare | Afp | Getty Photographs
Iran is staging a six-day funeral procession for Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the Supreme Chief who led the Islamic Republic for 4 many years and was killed on the primary day of the U.S.-Israeli struggle in February.
The ceremony will start on July 4, almost 4 months after Khamenei was killed, and finish on July 9. The procession will cowl cities throughout Iran and Iraq earlier than a last burial in Mashhad, Iran’s holiest metropolis.
The funeral, which “can be a tightly choreographed show of mourning, continuity and regime management,” Sanam Vakil, director of the Center East and North Africa Program at Chatham Home, instructed CNBC, was delayed for a number of months resulting from combating.
The occasion is anticipated to attract tens of thousands and thousands of mourners, and “might reveal tensions beneath the floor,” Vakil added.
The Islamic Republic is anticipated to enact unprecedented safety measures, overseen by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, whereas the Basij paramilitary power will coordinate logistics, lodging and crowd administration throughout the varied cities.
Khamenei’s last resting place is within the holy metropolis of his hometown Mashhad, which holds profound spiritual significance for Shia Islam, and is the place his father, the earlier ayatollah, is buried.
Khamenei funeral route and schedule
The funeral has been designed as each a nationwide and spiritual procession, touching among the most vital websites in Shia Islam in Iran and neighboring Iraq.
“That is mainly a political occasion portrayed as a spiritual one. It’s designed to venture legitimacy at dwelling and deterrence overseas,” Alex Vatanka, senior fellow on the Center East Institute, instructed CNBC.
July 4-5: Tehran
Public farewell ceremonies start at Tehran’s Mosalla prayer advanced round 6 a.m. native time, the standard venue for main state spiritual gatherings and former funerals of senior Islamic Republic figures.
July 6: Tehran
The principle funeral procession will journey roughly 10 kilometers from Imam Hossein Sq. to Azadi (Freedom) Sq. after funeral prayers for the slain Ayatollah and his household.
Tehran Mayor Alireza Zakani has mentioned attendance might attain 20 million folks, probably making it the most important gathering within the metropolis’s historical past.
Folks wave Iranian flags whereas attending the funeral of Alireza Tangsiri, commander of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards’ navy alongside others killed in US-Israeli strikes on Iran at Enghelab Sq. in Tehran on April 1, 2026.
AFP | Getty Photographs
July 7: Qom
The procession then strikes to Qom, Iran’s religious heart of Shia studying.
Occasions will happen between the Shrine of Fatima Masoumeh and Jamkaran Mosque, two of a very powerful spiritual websites in Twelver Shiism.
July 8: Najaf and Karbala, Iraq
The physique will then be transported to Iraq for ceremonies in Najaf and Karbala, dwelling to the shrines of Imam Ali and Imam Hussein, among the many holiest websites in Shia Islam. Iranian officers have coordinated preparations with Iraqi authorities for the occasions.
July 9: Mashhad
Khamenei can be laid to relaxation in Mashhad, his birthplace and Iran’s holiest metropolis.
Town is dwelling to the shrine of Imam Reza, the eighth Imam of Shia Islam, and holds deep spiritual significance for thousands and thousands of pilgrims. Mashhad can also be the place Khamenei was born and the place his father is buried. Iranian authorities estimate between 8 million and 10 million folks might attend the ultimate burial ceremony.
Iran’s Supreme Chief Ayatollah Ali Khamenei waves throughout a public rally in Mashhad, Iran March 21, 2023.
Workplace Of The Iranian Supreme Chief | WANA | through Reuters
Who is anticipated to attend the funeral?
Greater than 30 international locations have formally requested participation, Tasnim Information Company mentioned this week, quoting Ali Akbar Poorjamshidian of the IRGC.
Pakistan has confirmed its attendance, and He Wei, a senior Chinese language lawmaker, plans to attend, the Chinese language overseas ministry mentioned on Thursday.
No Gulf Arab authorities has publicly introduced whether or not senior officers, overseas ministers or heads of state will take part.
Senior Iraqi officers, together with President Nizar Amedi, will attend the funeral, Iran’s Fars Information Company mentioned on Wednesday.
The brand new Supreme Chief, Mojtaba Khamenei, would in concept wish to be current and visual and mourn the demise of his father alongside the nation. He has not been seen in public since his accession following his father’s demise. Any look can be learn as a present of energy to the USA.
“Now come the challenges of governance, together with deep financial issues, important social discontent, the spectre of renewed hostilities and a comparatively untried – and as but, nonetheless unseen, new Supreme Chief,” Naysan Rafati, Disaster Group’s Iran senior analyst, instructed CNBC.
FILE PHOTO: Iran’s new supreme chief, Mojtaba Khamenei, the second son of late Iran’s Supreme Chief Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, attends a gathering in Tehran, Iran, July 18, 2016.
Amir Kholousi | By way of Reuters
Safety operation
The size of the occasion has required important planning.
Authorities have mentioned highways round Tehran can be transformed into short-term parking zones, whereas faculties, mosques, universities and sports activities halls can be used to accommodate guests. Flights are anticipated to be disrupted and entry to main cities tightly managed.
Iran can be hoping to keep away from one other main safety breach as overseas dignitaries descend on the nation, like that of Masoud Pezeshkian’s inauguration in July 2024, throughout which Hamas political chief Ismail Haniyeh was killed at a military-run visitor home in Tehran.
