The funeral comes at a critical moment for Iran, turning the page of nearly four decades of Khamenei's rule and months after the latest round of mass nationwide protests against the Islamic Republic.
A man waves a flag near Imam Reza's shrine as mourners arrive for the funeral of slain Iranian leader Ali Khamenei and members of his family in Mashhad early on Jul 9, 2026. (File photo: AFP/Atta Kenare)
09 Jul 2026 02:16PM
(Updated: 09 Jul 2026 05:36PM)
DUBAI: Iran buries its slain Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on Thursday (Jul 9) at the country's holiest shrine, with his son and successor Mojtaba Khamenei still hidden from public view after being disfigured in the strike that killed his father. The burial in Mashhad in northeast Iran follows a week of mass funeral processions, rallies and mourning ceremonies that have coincided with a renewed burst of conflict with the United States following weeks of truce.Crowds marched through Mashhad on Thursday morning, the golden onion dome and minarets of the Shrine of Imam Reza glinting in the morning sun, as they waved Iranian flags, photographs of the late Khamenei and placards with revolutionary slogans.As Khamenei's body was transported around Iran and Iraq over the past week, the Islamic Republic's clerical leaders encouraged huge crowds to attend in an effort to vaunt the might and ideological fire of their theocratic state.
