Iranian parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf and foreign minister Abbas Araghchi got emotional during the farewell ceremony for former Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in Tehran on Friday, as the country began a week-long mourning period for the late leader. The solemn ceremony at Tehran’s Grand Mosalla marked the beginning of extensive funeral rites for Khamenei, who was killed in US-Israeli strikes on February 28 this year. The parliament Speaker Ghalibaf was visibly crying as Araghchi stood next to him as they paid tribute.According to Press TV, the ceremony drew senior Iranian officials, heads of state and high-level delegations from across the world. Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, judiciary chief Gholam-Hossein Mohseni Eje’i and expediency council chairman Ayatollah Sadeq Amoli Larijani were among those in attendance.India was represented by minister of state for external affairs Pabitra Margherita and Bihar governor Lt Gen (Retd.) Syed Ata Hasnain, who offered condolences on behalf of the country. The Iranian embassy in India also acknowledged the presence of several Indian political figures, including PDP chief Mehbooba Mufti and Congress leader Salman Khurshid, at the tribute ceremony. Foreign dignitaries included Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, Armenia Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, Tajikistan President Emomali Rahmon, Turkmenistan’s Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedow and Russian security council deputy chairman Dmitry Medvedev, alongside representatives from dozens of other countries.Officials estimate that between 15 and 20 million mourners could take part in the multi-day funeral ceremonies. The body will lie in state at Tehran’s Grand Mosalla before a funeral procession through the capital on Monday. The final rites will continue in Qom, Baghdad, Karbala and Najaf before Khamenei is laid to rest in Mashhad on July 9.
