Iran’s ruling clerics are preparing days of mass funeral rites for Ayatollah Ali Khamenei as a show of public devotion to the Islamic Republic and proof that its revolutionary fervour still burns strong.Iran’s supreme leader was killed by US and Israeli strikes in their first attack of the war and the funeral events will begin over the weekend in Tehran, with mass processions planned next week in Qom and Mashhad and ceremonies in Iraq.”The large public turnout at the funeral procession of the martyred leader and the other martyrs will, in effect, be another referendum for the Islamic Republic,” Qom Friday prayer leader Ayatollah Mohammad Saidi declared to state media.Powerful general in Iran emerges from hiding as Tehran prepares for Khamenei’s dayslong funeralJuly 3, 2026 12:00 pmA powerful general who leads Iran’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard emerged from hiding as Tehran prepared Friday for the dayslong funeral for the late Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Photos published online by Iranian state media showed Gen Ahmad Vahidi attending a meeting about the funeral of Khamenei, 86, then sitting alongside his casket as Iran’s theocracy held a smaller service for him on Thursday night near the supreme leader’s former home in downtown Tehran.Ayatollah Khamenei’s coffin taken to the site of assassination: Iranian mediaJuly 3, 2026 8:06 amIranian state media said that in an unannounced event, the coffin carrying the body of former Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was taken to the site where he was killed. According to the Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting (IRIB), “In an unannounced event, the coffin carrying the body of the martyred leader Ayatollah Khamenei was brought to the site of his martyrdom.” The multi-day public farewell, scheduled to take place on July 4 and 5 in the capital city, is anticipated to draw a record-breaking crowd of up to 20 million participants, according to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).