Huge turnout in martyred Leader’s Iraq funeral delays procession in Mashhad

The massive turnout of people in the funeral of the martyred Leader of the Islamic Revolution, Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei, in Iraq has led to a delay in the procession in the holy Iranian city of Mashhad.

The committee overseeing the receiving and burying of the late Leader’s body in Mashhad said that due to the Iraqi people’s magnificent and unprecedented reception, the funeral procession has been rescheduled from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. local time on Thursday.

During the event, the body of Ayatollah Khamenei will be carried along the Imam Reza (AS) Street toward the shrine of the eighth Shia Imam, it added.

The Leader was assassinated, alongside some of his family members, on February 28, the first day of the 40-day illegal war of aggression waged by the United States and the Israeli regime against Iran.

The multi-day funeral began on Friday with Ayatollah Khamenei’s body lying in state at Tehran’s Imam Khomeini Mosalla and foreign dignitaries and religious figures paying their respects. It continued on Saturday and Sunday with a public farewell and prayers, respectively.

On Monday, millions of Iranians packed the streets of Tehran as the funeral convoy made its way through the Iranian capital. The ceremony continued in Iran’s holy city of Qom on Tuesday.

Later, a historic farewell ceremony took place in Iraq’s Najaf, home to the shrine of the first Shia Imam, Imam Ali (AS), as well as in Karbala, home to the shrines of Imam Hussein (AS), the third Shia Imam, and his brother Hazrat Abbas (AS) for commemorative ceremonies.

Initial reports of Iraqi media point to the participation of more than 7 million people in the funeral processions in Najaf and Karbala.

The flight carrying the bodies of the martyred Leader and his family members left Najaf on Thursday morning following a historic 24-hour procession in the two Iraqi cities. 

Quds Force chief thanks Iraq for Leader’s magnificent funeral

In a message issued on Thursday, the commander of the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) Quds Force Brigadier General Esmail Qaani expressed appreciation to the Iraqi nation and government for the magnificent funeral procession of the martyred Leader.

“Today, the Iraqi nation created an epic for the ages; men and women, young and old—Shias, Sunnis, Kurds, Christians, and Muslims, along with religious scholars, high-ranking clerics, proud tribal figures, and officials—all came together to bid farewell to a man who dedicated his blessed life to serving the Islamic Ummah, the oppressed and downtrodden of the world, and to defending the interests and sanctities of the Islamic community.”

The martyred Leader’s funeral “served as a powerful display of Muslim unity and a manifestation of abhorrence toward global arrogance and international Zionism, as well as a call to avenge the blood of the exalted martyr and all the martyrs of the Muslim world,” he noted.

Also, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi thanked the Iraqi people, government and a broad range of religious, tribal and security authorities for facilitating the "magnificent" funeral ceremonies for the martyred Leader.

In a message released on Thursday, Araghchi said the millions-strong turnout and warm hospitality demonstrated by Iraqis represented "an unparalleled manifestation of dignity and Islamic brotherhood."

He said the ceremonies reflected the deep religious, historical and cultural bonds between the neighboring nations, adding that the ties have remained steadfast through their shared devotion to Imam Hussein (AS), once again embodying the enduring truth that "Love for Hussein unites us."

Araghchi said the events in Najaf and Karbala marked "another golden chapter" in Iran-Iraq relations, founded on shared Islamic ideals and the enduring friendship between the two peoples.

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