Iran is preparing for a lavish six-day funeral to honor deceased former Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, with militant and authoritarian allies descending on the capital of Tehran for a spectacle designed to project the regime’s strength despite war, economic turmoil, and uncertainty over its future.
The ceremonies begin Saturday, more than four months after Khamenei was killed in the opening wave of U.S. and Israeli airstrikes on Feb. 28.
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Notably absent is expected to be his son and successor, Mojtaba Khamenei, who has not appeared publicly since assuming power in March after reportedly being wounded in the same strike that killed his father. His absence has fueled continued speculation about his health as U.S.-Iran negotiations remain on hold.
Perhaps one of the most notable appearances came from Gen. Ahmad Vahidi, who leads the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and had not been seen publicly for months.
Iranian state media released photographs showing Vahidi attending a meeting on the funeral preparations before later sitting beside Khamenei’s casket during a private service on Thursday evening.
Black banners bearing Khamenei’s image have blanketed Tehran, Guard troops have fanned out across the capital, and authorities have erected security checkpoints while preparing for what officials claim could draw as many as 20 million mourners, according to a source affiliated with Iranian state media, NBC News reported.
The weeklong ceremonies will culminate on Thursday, July 9, with Khamenei’s burial at the Imam Reza shrine in his hometown of Mashhad.
The multi-day funeral is expected to serve as both a religious ceremony and a political summit for many of Iran’s remaining international partners, with Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, Tajik President Emomali Rahmon, Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, Georgian President Mikheil Kavelashvili, former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev, senior Chinese official He Wei, Turkish Vice President Cevdet Yilmaz, and senior officials from India, Bangladesh, and Afghanistan’s Taliban government expected to attend.
Iranian leaders have cast the funeral as a display of national unity and resistance after months of war. Analysts say Guard leadership is likely to use the ceremony to reinforce its grip on power following the deaths of several senior political and military figures during the conflict.
But many Iranians are not embracing the spectacle.
Residents interviewed by AFP said Tehran streets have emptied as families leave the capital ahead of the ceremonies. Others questioned how the government can afford such an extravagant event while ordinary Iranians face rising food prices, inflation, and the lingering economic fallout from war.
“The government says it has planned food, drinks, accommodation, and other services for 15 million attendees,” one Iranian told AFP. “My question is: where did that money come from?”
Kaveh, a 38-year-old visual artist in Tehran, described the funeral as “an extravagant and expensive ceremony for a dictator,” criticizing the regime for spending lavishly on the event while many Iranians struggle with inflation and rising food prices. Elnaz, a 32-year-old painter, said the ceremony appealed primarily to government loyalists rather than ordinary Iranians.
Security remains another concern. Nighttime checkpoints have returned to Tehran, roads have been closed, and authorities have deployed heavy security amid fears of possible terrorist attacks or deadly crowd crushes during the massive public gatherings.
The precautions reflect both the threat of attacks and memories of the chaotic 1989 funeral for Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, when a stampede left several people dead and scores injured.
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For Iran’s leadership, however, the greater challenge may begin after the final procession ends.
While the funeral is intended to project unity and resilience, the country continues to face economic hardship, lingering public discontent, and an uncertain political future following the death of the man who dominated the Islamic Republic for nearly four decades.
