Overview
- The Iranian government announced Saturday that public ceremonies for Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei will run July 4–9 and end with burial in Mashhad, with events in Tehran and Qom before the interment.
- Khamenei was killed on February 28 during air strikes that launched the war with the United States and Israel, and state authorities postponed public rites for more than four months because of security risks.
- Mojtaba Khamenei has been named successor but has not appeared publicly since the attack and intelligence and press reports say he was seriously injured in the same strike.
- International diplomats say parts of the ceremonies will use virtual arrangements and that Turkey, Pakistan, Qatar and Egypt will play mediating or supporting roles, while Pakistan’s prime minister has reported progress in U.S.-Iran talks.
- Iran frames the schedule as a step toward internal normalization and a show of intact state institutions, a signal that could affect domestic stability, regional diplomacy and the pace of any peace process.