TEHRAN – Tens of millions of mourners filled the streets of Tehran and the holy city of Qom over three days to bid a final farewell to the martyred Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei, and four members of his family assassinated alongside him in a February 28 U.S.-Israeli terrorist strike.
The weeklong funeral ceremonies, a referendum on the Islamic Republic, transformed the capital and the country’s spiritual center into seas of black-clad mourners, waving blood-red flags of vengeance in scenes reminiscent of the 1989 funeral of Imam Khomeini.
The scale of the outpouring—with estimates suggesting up to 20 million participants across Tehran alone—sent a powerful message of resilience to Iran’s adversaries at a time of profound national trauma.
The multi-day funeral began on Friday, July 3, with a formal memorial service in Tehran attended by high-level delegations from more than 30 countries, including Russia, China, Pakistan, India, and Cuba, as well as religious leaders from over 90 nations.
On Saturday and Sunday, the bodies lay in state at Tehran’s Grand Mosalla prayer complex, where millions of ordinary Iranians filed past the coffins to pay their respects. Sunday’s funeral prayer marked the formal religious farewell before the main procession.
But it was Monday’s procession through the heart of Tehran and Tuesday’s ceremonies in Qom that would come to define the historic nature of the farewell—a spectacle of collective grief compared to the legendary funeral of the revolution’s founder in 1989.
On Monday, the main funeral procession began at approximately 6:00 a.m., with a truck carrying the coffins of the martyred Leader and his family members—including his daughter Seyyedeh Boshra Khamenei, his son-in-law Dr. Mesbah al-Hoda Bagheri, his daughter-in-law Zahra Haddad Adel, and his 14-month-old granddaughter Zahra Muhammadi Golpayegani—inching its way along a 20-kilometer route through Tehran’s main streets.
The route extended from eastern Tehran through Damavand Street, Imam Hussein Square, and onto Enghelab Street—a thoroughfare steeped in revolutionary history—before passing through Enghelab Square and continuing on Azadi Street, culminating at the symbolic Azadi Square in the west of the city, and then heading to Shahid Lashkari Highway.
Tehran’s airspace was completely closed for the duration of the procession, a measure taken to ensure security for the unprecedented gathering.
National television showed a huge sea of mourners who had turned out for the event, despite sweltering heat that nudged 40 degrees Celsius. Trucks equipped with water hoses sprayed mourners along the route to provide relief from the scorching sun.
The atmosphere was charged with emotion and defiance. Mourners threw flower petals onto the coffins—including the tiny casket of the Leader’s infant granddaughter—beat their chests in mourning, and chanted slogans calling for revenge, including “Kill Trump,” while carrying blood-red flags symbolizing vengeance in Shia Islam alongside portraits of the new Leader, Ayatollah Seyyed Mojtaba Khamenei.
“I came with honor and pride to show all the people of the world how much we loved him and how committed we are to the system, the people, and the Islamic republic,” said Melika Nourian, a 22-year-old university student in Tehran.
In a striking display of collective fury, mourners were seen hurling stones at a billboard displaying Trump’s face, with a sign reading: “The U.S. killed our father. We won’t let you go!”
Muhammad Rasouli, a poet addressing the hundreds of thousands gathered at Tehran’s Grand Mosalla, drew thunderous chants of “Death to America” and “Death to Israel” when he asked: “Why is the most bastard man in the world still alive?”
“We are not here to say goodbye to him, we are here for revenge. And we will take revenge,” a mourner told CNN’s team on the ground. Sahar Zaraatgar, another mourner, declared: “We are here to show that his path will continue, and every single one of these people will continue down his path with clenched fists, and soon we will certainly avenge his death against the US and Israel.”
The procession was attended by top officials, including President Masoud Pezeshkian, Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, judiciary chief Gholamhussein Mohseni Ejei, and the current head of the Quds Force, General Esmail Qaani.
Commander-in-Chief of the Iranian Army Major General Amir Hatami declared: “We will not let go of the collars of those who martyred our Leader.”
IRGC Quds Force Commander Brigadier General Esmail Qaani described Ayatollah Khamenei’s martyrdom as the culmination of a lifetime of service, saying: “An Imam who spent a lifetime striving purely should have had such a blessed end.”
The head of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, Muhammad Bagher Zolghadr, who was making his first public appearance since being named to the post, declared: “The presence of millions of people with red flags and slogans, demanding bloodshed, is a clear message from the Iranian nation to its enemies.”
Zolghadr declared on the sidelines of the procession that the massive turnout had created a “new equation”.
“Astute observers noticed today that a new equation has taken shape in Tehran,” he said, emphasizing that the mass gathering demonstrates Iranians’ unity and solidarity in the face of foreign threats.
President Pezeshkian wrote on social media: “The leadership of the martyr taught everyone that Iran’s greatest asset is its people and their unity.” Pezeshkian pledged to continue Imam Khamenei’s path: “I promise to continue the path of the martyr Imam.”
Following the Tehran procession, the body of the martyred Leader was transported by helicopter to the holy city of Qom, the center of Iran’s religious education, arriving on Monday evening.
The stop in Qom was deeply symbolic for the Islamic Republic, as the city has played a significant role in Iran’s history and politics over the last century. It was home to some of the most strident opposition to Iran’s monarchy, particularly in the 1960s and 1970s, and clerics educated there under the leadership of Imam Khomeini emerged victorious during the revolution and the internal power struggle that followed.
On Tuesday, millions of mourners gathered at the Holy Jamkaran Mosque for the official funeral prayer and street procession. Grand Ayatollah Abdullah Javadi Amoli led the funeral prayers early Tuesday morning in the presence of worshippers, religious scholars, government officials, and military commanders.
Following the prayers, the coffins were carried by mourners from the Jamkaran Mosque along Payambar Azam Boulevard to the Shrine of Hazrat Fatima Masumeh, a path that had been prepared to accommodate the massive crowds.
Mourners from provinces across Iran had begun arriving in Qom the previous afternoon, filling the mosque’s courtyards and surrounding streets. Processions of mourners, traveling on foot and by vehicle while carrying red “Ya Litharat al-Husayn” banners alongside the Iranian national flag, continued to converge on the site.
Aerial footage broadcast by national television showed the streets of Qom, home to about 1.5 million people, submerged in a sea of mourners. Thousands of red flags were visible among the predominantly black-clad crowds.
The massive crowd chanted in unison, “Death to America.” Crowds began arriving in Qom from across Iran since Monday afternoon, filling the mosque’s courtyards and prayer halls before dawn.
Qom Friday prayer leader Ayatollah Muhammad Saidi had declared beforehand that the funeral turnout would serve as a “referendum for the Islamic Republic”.
The ceremonies in both Tehran and Qom sent a clear message to Iran’s adversaries at a time of war and national mourning, indicating the country’s unity and resilience.
Hassan Abdullah, a Nigerian student studying in Iran, told reporters that he came to the farewell ceremony to pray for the martyred leader. “Sayyid Ali Khamenei was the father of the oppressed,” Abdullah said, visibly emotional.
“He always spoke about the oppressed and helped them. He hated injustice throughout his life and helped people around the world. This incident is a very big thing in our hearts. I was very sad because they separated us from our father. God willing, with his blood, Israel and America will come to an end.”
U.S. President Donald Trump drew widespread condemnation when he suggested that the tears of Iranian mourners were “fake” and claimed the United States could have eliminated Iran’s leadership with “one shot” while they gathered for the funeral.
When asked about the large crowds mourning Ayatollah Khamenei, Trump said he was surprised. “Maybe it’s fake tears,” he told Axios.
President Pezeshkian declared that the mourning of the Iranian people is the “best evidence of the greatness, dignity, and strength of the martyred leader of the revolution”.
Araghchi also issued a warning: “Any threat against our people and leadership will receive an immediate, powerful response.” The chants of “Death to Trump” that echoed through the crowds in Tehran served as a resounding popular response to the U.S. president’s provocations.
“I heard the call for revenge, but our leader should say what we need to do. And we must listen to him,” said Ziba Naderi, a 42-year-old nurse attending the funeral.
“I want to say one sentence to President Trump and the world,” declared a grey-haired man named Mojtaba, who approached journalists with a message of defiance.
“Soon, very soon you will see signs of revenge at the top of the White House, and soon the color of the White House will be the color of my red flag.”
“We lost our father,” a woman from Bosnia told Iranian media, summing up the sentiment of many foreign mourners who traveled to Iran to participate.
The scale of the international presence at the ceremonies has been a powerful counter-narrative to the isolationist policies of the United States. Representatives from approximately 100 countries attended the official farewell ceremonies, with high-level delegations from at least 30 nations present.
The presence of leaders and officials from Russia, China, Pakistan, Turkey, Iraq, Armenia, and many others illustrated that the Iranian nation’s friends are numerous and stand in solidarity with it during this time of immense grief.
Robert Pape, a University of Chicago political scientist, stated that the massive funeral ceremonies demonstrate growing nationalist resolve and will strengthen Iran’s negotiating position.
“The balance of military capabilities did not change over the weekend,” Pape said. “The balance of political will shifted.”
The funerals are scheduled to continue in Iraq’s holy cities of Najaf and Karbala on Wednesday, where President Pezeshkian is expected to travel to attend the ceremonies.
The final burial will take place on Thursday at the shrine of Imam Reza (AS) in Mashhad, the martyred Leader’s hometown, in accordance with his stated wishes.
As the weeklong mourning rituals unfold across Iran and into Iraq, the images of tens of millions grieving in unison have become a defining moment for the Islamic Republic—a testament both to the depth of public devotion to the martyred Leader and national unity.