The Indian government will send a high-level delegation to attend the funeral of former Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Union Minister of State for External Affairs Pavitra Margherita and Bihar Governor Lt Gen (retd) Syed Ata Hasmaine will attend the event, official sources said. Last week, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian invited Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi to attend the funeral. The funeral rites will begin on July 4 and conclude on July 9 with the burial of his body in the holy city of Mashhad in northeastern Iran. Khamenei was born in the city of Mashhad.
Khamenei, 86, was killed on February 28, the first day of Israeli and US airstrikes in Iran’s capital, Tehran. He ruled as the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Republic of Iran for 36 years. The funeral program will also include a special religious ceremony on July 7 in Qom, another holy city south of Tehran, state media reported. Since Khamenei’s death, there has been much speculation about the date of his funeral. According to Islamic law, the body must be buried as soon as possible, although there are some exceptions due to war situations.
Around 20 million mourners are expected to gather in the cities of Tehran, Mashhad and Qom for the funeral. Many international leaders, including Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, are also expected to attend. If the crowd does happen, it will surpass the 10 million people who gathered at the 1989 funeral of Iran’s founder, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini. Khamenei’s 56-year-old son, Mojtaba Hosseini Khamenei, has been Iran’s new supreme leader since March, but some top US officials have made varying claims about his health and current condition and suspect he is in a coma. Meanwhile, Iran and the United States recently signed a peace deal ending the long-running conflict, and long-term peace talks between the two countries are still ongoing in Switzerland.