The marathon weeklong funeral for Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei will culminate today when his body is transported to its final burial site at the Imam Reza shrine in the northeastern city of Mashhad – Khamenei’s birthplace.
Iranian state media reported on Thursday morning that Khamenei’s body had departed Iraq’s Najaf airport, bound for Iran.
A central question that has loomed over the funeral is whether Mojtaba Khamenei, the new supreme leader and son of the slain ayatollah, will make an appearance.
Mojtaba has not yet been seen in public and his absence has fueled doubts about his health and questions over who is leading the nation. He is thought to have been wounded in the joint US-Israeli attack that killed his father, mother and wife and other relatives.
Mojtaba’s first public appearance would be a huge moment. He has remained in hiding since the war began in late February, said to be communicating with his supporters only through written statements shared by Iranian media and attributed to him.
Iran’s Islamic Propagation Coordination Council announced on Thursday that a memorial ceremony will be held on Friday in the city of Qom “under the auspices of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Imam Seyyed Mojtaba Khamenei,” the official Islamic Republic News Agency reported Thursday.
Whether this indicates that Mojtaba could make an appearance remains unclear. A more likely scenario is that the ceremony is being held on behalf of the supreme leader.
An appearance in Qom could make sense, however. The city is widely considered the second most sacred in Iran and the center of Shiite religious studies — Mojtaba studied there himself. On Tuesday, huge crowds filled the city’s streets for Khamenei’s funeral ceremonies, though the supreme leader remained absent.
CNN’s Mostafa Salem and Lex Harvey contributed reporting.
Will Iran’s new supreme leader appear as his father’s marathon funeral nears its end? Egypt Independent.
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