Khamenei Funeral to Begin July 4 as US-Iran Truce MOU Nears

Ceremonies to open in Tehran before continuing in Qom and ending with burial in Mashhad

Funeral starts 126 days after his death and coincides with US Independence Day

Schedule released as US-Iran ceasefire MOU appears close

The funeral for former Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei, who was killed in US and Israeli airstrikes, will begin on July 4, 126 days after his death on the first day of the war.

Iranian authorities will hold a public farewell on July 4 and July 5 at Imam Khomeini Mosalla in Tehran, according to Iranian state media including IRIB and IRNA on June 13. A funeral procession and related rites will be held in Tehran on July 6. Ceremonies will continue in the Shiite holy city of Qom on July 7.

The final funeral ceremony will be held in Mashhad on July 9. Khamenei, whose hometown is Mashhad, is to be buried at the Imam Reza shrine.

Khamenei was killed alongside family members in US and Israeli bombardment on Feb. 28, the first day of the war. After his death, Iran selected his son, Mojtaba Khamenei, 57, as the next supreme leader. It remains unclear whether Mojtaba, who has not appeared in public, will emerge during the funeral.

The funeral schedule was announced as expectations grew that a memorandum of understanding between the US and Iran to end the war was close. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said on June 12 that an agreement with Washington had entered its final stage and had won approval from the leadership, including the supreme leader.

Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, who has mediated the ceasefire talks, wrote on X on June 13 that a final agreement was expected within 24 hours and that preparations were under way for an immediate electronic signing of the document.

July 4, when the funeral begins, coincides with the 250th anniversary of US Independence Day. Iranian authorities had initially planned the funeral for March but delayed it as the war dragged on. They later held a nationwide memorial event on April 9.

Khamenei stood at the apex of Iran's theocratic system for 37 years. He joined Ruhollah Khomeini in leading the Islamic Revolution in 1978 and became Iran's second supreme leader after Khomeini's death in 1989.

Shin Hyun-bo, Hankyung.com reporter greaterfool@hankyung.com