Tehran: Iran will hold a funeral for Ali Khamenei on July 4. Iranian state media reported that the funeral rites for Iran's former Supreme Leader, Ali Khamenei, will begin in Tehran on July 4 and conclude with the burial in Mashhad, in the northeast of the country, on July 9. This comes after a delay of more than four months due to the ongoing war and instability in the region.

According to Thai News Agency, this historic mourning period will be held on a grand scale in three major cities, beginning with a three-day memorial service and funeral procession in Tehran, expected to attract tens of millions of participants. The procession will then continue on July 7 to the holy city of Qom, a major religious center south of Tehran, before the burial on July 9 at the Imam Reza Mausoleum in Mashhad, Khamenei's birthplace and the holiest site for Shia Muslims.

Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, 86, died on February 28 in a joint US-Israeli airstrike in Tehran. His death marks the end of more than three decades as leader of the Islamic Republic. His funeral, originally scheduled for early March, has been indefinitely postponed due to the ongoing war, as well as security and infrastructure concerns. However, online commentators have questioned the delay, arguing that it contradicts traditional Islamic practice of burying the deceased as soon as possible, or within 24 hours.

The announcement of the official funeral date coincides with news from intermediaries that the United States and Iran are close to reaching a peace agreement to end the war that has lasted more than three months. Currently, Mojtaba Khamenei, his 56-year-old son, has served as Iran's new Supreme Leader since March 8.