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Former Iranian supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was laid to rest on Friday on the last of a marathon six days of funeral ceremonies, as two days of US and Iranian attacks raised fears of a return to all-out war.
The “body of the martyred leader of the Islamic Revolution was buried in the memorial hall of the shrine of Imam Reza,” state broadcaster IRIB reported.
Khamenei’s flag-covered coffin was carried aloft into the shrine of Imam Reza in his home city of Mashhad in eastern Iran as a sea of people waited outside and listened to prayers.
His burial came after a second day of tit-for-tat attacks by Washington and Tehran’s forces, with Iranian officials reporting that US strikes killed 17 people and state media saying one targeted a railway line between Tehran and Mashhad.
The Islamic republic said it had resumed attacks targeting US assets in Kuwait, Bahrain and Qatar, while sirens also blared in Jordan, where the military said it had intercepted eight missiles launched from Iran.
Khamenei was killed alongside close family members on the first day of the US-Israeli war against Iran on 28 February. His burial in Mashhad was closely watched for signs of his successor Mojtaba Khamenei, who has yet to appear in public since being appointed.
Parliament speaker and chief negotiator in talks with the United States, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, powerful chief justice Gholamhossein Mohseni Ejei, and Khamenei’s eldest son Mostafa Khamenei were all present at the shrine, with some senior figures weeping over Khamenei’s coffin, state TV images showed.
But as on other days of the funeral process, there was no sign of Mojtaba Khamenei, who since being named has only communicated through written statements and is said to have been wounded in the 28 February strikes.
Khamenei ruled Iran for nearly 37 years before being killed in the US and Israeli airstrikes that started the war.
The funeral processions began last Saturday, with authorities shutting down streets, airspace and daily life in Tehran and other cities as throngs commemorated the man who led Iran for decades with an iron fist while confronting the West.
Trump said Wednesday that the interim ceasefire agreement was “over.” He said he would allow negotiations to continue but thought negotiators were “wasting their time.”
Negotiations to reach a final deal were due to start after the funeral for Khamenei.
The talks are meant to focus on the toughest matters, including fully reopening the strait and rolling back Tehran’s disputed nuclear programme.
Additional sources • AFP