Huge crowds lined the streets of Mashhad, the holy city of Iran, for the burial of the late senior cleric Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. The 56‑year‑old former supreme leader was laid to rest at the shrine of Imam Reza, the holiest site for Shia Muslims in the country. The ceremony followed six days of public mourning in five cities across Iran and neighbouring Iraq.
The coffin arrived in Mashhad on a plane that had flown from Iraq where crowds watched its procession through Najaf and Karbala. In the afternoon thousands of mourners walked along a main boulevard, many waving flags and holding red banners that called for vengeance against US and Israeli officials.
These crowds also carried photographs of Khamenei and placards demanding the death of US President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. The banners displayed slogans such as “We must rise” and highlighted the country’s desire for retaliation after a series of recent strikes on Iranian infrastructure.
While the late leader’s son, Mojtaba, has not appeared publicly since he suffered injuries in the February attack, the funeral showed a united front and a defiant message to outside powers. The event occurred against the backdrop of an exchange of strikes between Iran and the US that threatens to derail a preliminary peace deal over the war in the region.
The funeral included the traditional procession of the coffin through the crowded streets, ending at the Imam Reza shrine as night fell. The shrine, known for its golden dome and towering minarets, is a site visited by millions of pilgrims each year. Khamenei’s burial underscores a fragile moment of unity in a country grappling with war, domestic strife and a shaky diplomatic future.
