Iran Holds Weeklong Funeral for Khamenei Killed by Israel
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- Iran prepared for a dayslong funeral beginning Saturday (July 4, 2026) for Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, killed in an Israeli airstrike on February 28, 2026 at age 86, with state media projecting millions flooding Tehran streets.
- Khamenei's casket sat at Tehran's Grand Mosalla alongside family members killed in the same February 28 strike: his son-in-law, eldest daughter, a 14-month-old granddaughter, and the wife of new Supreme Leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei.
- Gen. Ahmad Vahidi, commander of Iran's Revolutionary Guard, appeared publicly for the first time since February 8, 2026, attending funeral planning meetings and sitting beside Khamenei's coffin at a Thursday night service.
- Iran's joint military command warned the US, Israel, and "regional accomplices" against threatening Mojtaba Khamenei, who remains in hiding after reportedly being wounded in the February strike.
- Tehran authorities planned to shut down streets and airspace while banners across the capital displayed images of Khamenei's clenched fist and read "We must rise" in Arabic, English, and Farsi.
- The funeral procession will transport Khamenei's body to cities across Iran and neighboring Iraq, with state media drawing explicit parallels to Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini's 1989 burial.
Why it matters: The funeral doubles as a public stage for Iran's wounded new Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei, whose father and a 14-month-old relative were also killed in the February 28 strike. With Revolutionary Guard chief Vahidi reappearing publicly for the first time since February 8 and Tehran issuing direct military warnings to Israel and the US, Iran's position in negotiations over a permanent end to the war and its hold on the Strait of Hormuz will not soften.
