Leaders from over 100 countries arrive in Tehran as Khamenei funeral gets underway

Representatives from more than 100 countries are expected to attend the funeral of former Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, which began in Tehran on Friday (3 July), according to Iranian state-linked broadcaster IRIB, Al Jazeera reported.

Khamenei, 86, was killed in a joint United States-Israeli air strike on his compound on 28 February, the first day of the US-Israel war on Iran.

The funeral, originally scheduled for March, was postponed as the conflict continued. The main state ceremony on Saturday (4 July) is expected to draw the largest gathering of foreign dignitaries, with funeral rites and public processions continuing across Iran and Iraq over the next seven days.

Among those attending are several heads of state and government, including Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif. Pakistan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs confirmed his visit on Thursday.

Pakistan has played a key diplomatic role during the conflict, helping broker the April ceasefire between the US and Iran before facilitating a memorandum of understanding in June that now forms the basis for broader negotiations aimed at ending the war.

Pakistan's Chief of Army Staff Field Marshal Asim Munir and Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi also arrived in Tehran on Friday to attend the ceremonies.

Tajik President Emomali Rahmon, Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan and Georgian President Mikheil Kavelashvili are also expected to attend Friday's commemoration.

Several countries are sending senior government officials instead of their heads of state.

Turkiye will be represented by Vice President Cevdet Yilmaz.

India has announced that Minister of State for External Affairs Pabitra Margherita and Bihar Governor Syed Ata Hasnain will attend the funeral. Hasnain, a former lieutenant general in the Indian Army, is the seniormost Shia currently holding public office in India. Former foreign minister Salman Khurshid and opposition leader Mehbooba Mufti are also part of the Indian delegation.

China will send He Wei, vice chairperson of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress, while Russia will be represented by Security Council Deputy Chairman Dmitry Medvedev, a former president and prime minister.

Iran's Foreign Ministry confirmed that Afghanistan's acting Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi arrived in Tehran on Thursday for the funeral. Afghan media also reported that Deputy Prime Minister for Economic Affairs Abdul Ghani Baradar would attend.

Bangladesh will be represented by Parliament Speaker Hafiz Uddin Ahmed, according to Bangladeshi media reports citing official notifications.

Following Friday's ceremony, the public will be able to pay their respects at Tehran's Grand Mosalla on Saturday and Sunday, where Khamenei's coffin, along with those of several members of his family, will lie in state.

The funeral procession will then move to the Iranian city of Qom on Monday and Tuesday before travelling to Iraq. An official reception is scheduled at Najaf International Airport on Wednesday, followed by public processions in Najaf and Karbala.

The body will return to Iran for burial at the shrine of Imam Reza in Mashhad next Friday. Mashhad is also Khamenei's birthplace.

Iranian authorities expect the funeral to become one of the largest public commemorations in modern history, surpassing the estimated 10 million mourners who attended the funeral of former Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini in 1989.

Mojtaba Khamenei, Iran's current supreme leader and son of Ali Khamenei, will not attend the funeral because of security concerns, according to his representative in India. The decision follows what Iranian officials described as recent Israeli threats against him.

Ahead of the funeral, Ali Abdollahi, commander of Iran's Khatam al-Anbiya Central Headquarters, warned the United States and Israel against any attack during the ceremonies.

"We warn the enemies of Iran, especially the US and the Zionist regime, to avoid any miscalculation and to think about the harsh retaliation our armed forces would make to any threat and aggression against our country," he said in a statement carried by Iranian state media.