Iran's late Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei to be buried in hometown Mashhad after six days of mourning
Iran's late Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei is set to be buried in his hometown of Mashhad on Thursday, bringing to a close six days of funeral ceremonies held across Iran and Iraq.
Footage released by the supreme leader's official website showed at least one fighter jet escorting the aircraft carrying Khamenei's coffin as it arrived in the eastern holy city.
His coffin was accompanied by those of family members killed in the US-Israeli strikes of February 28, which marked the beginning of the wider Middle East conflict.
Iranian fighter jets escort the plane carrying Khamenei's casket
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The coffins had travelled from Iraq, where thousands gathered for funeral processions in the holy cities of Najaf and Karbala.
Burial at Imam Reza Shrine
The funeral cortege reached Mashhad after five days of mourning ceremonies in Tehran, the clerical city of Qom, and the Iraqi cities of Najaf and Karbala.
Khamenei is to be buried at the Shrine of Imam Reza, Iran's holiest Shia site and the resting place of several former Iranian rulers, as well as former President Ebrahim Raisi, who died in a helicopter crash in 2024. Imam Reza is the only one of the twelve Shia imams buried within Iran.
According to Iranian state media, Khamenei will be laid to rest alongside his infant granddaughter, daughter, son-in-law and Zahra Haddad Adel, the wife of his son Mojtaba Khamenei, all of whom were killed in the February 28 strikes.
Thousands gather for final farewell
Large crowds of supporters of the Islamic Republic lined the streets of Mashhad for the final funeral procession.
State news agency IRNA reported that the burial prayers would be led by conservative cleric Ayatollah Hossein Noori Hamedani, aged 101.
Khamenei's chief of staff, Mohammad Mohammadi-Golpaygani, earlier said the late supreme leader had personally expressed his wish to be buried in his birthplace.
Burial amid renewed regional conflict
The funeral comes against the backdrop of escalating hostilities in the Middle East.
Even as preparations for Khamenei's burial were underway, Iran and the United States exchanged strikes for a second consecutive day.
Iran said it had resumed attacks targeting US military bases in Kuwait, Bahrain and Qatar. The latest escalation, linked to tensions over the Strait of Hormuz, has renewed fears of a wider regional conflict.
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