Packed processions streamed through central Tehran, with dramatic slogans and provocation that hint at potential regional fallout and influence.
On July 6, 2026, crowds of Iranians marched through the streets of Tehran on Monday during the funeral procession for the late Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the biggest day of the week for memorial ceremonies highlighting the influence of the ruling clergy.
Drones from the state television network showed that tens of thousands of people were densely gathered on the city’s central boulevard.
The coffins of the deceased leader and four members of his family rode along the streets on a large truck, while water hoses sprayed water from above to cool the participants of the procession.
The US killed our father. We will not let you go!
– on the scene
During the procession under the bridge, mourners threw stones at a billboard depicting U.S. President Donald Trump with a bullet aimed at his head.
Near this poster, people shouted slogans, and women in black chadors held red posters with the English words “KILL TRUMP” on a black background.
Others held posters bearing the faces of Donald Trump, JD Vance, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, or Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, each shown within the crosshairs of a weapon with the caption “There will be blood”.
Larger crowds raised Iranian flags and red banners calling for so-called “Khamenei’s avengers,” a paraphrase of a phrase used by Shiite doctrine since the life of the Prophet Muhammad’s grandson, who was killed in battle in the seventh century.
Sons pray for Khamenei, but Mojtaba did not appear
On Sunday, three of the deceased leader’s sons prayed beside his coffin in a large prayer hall in Tehran.
However Mojtaba Khamenei, the son who had become the successor to the position of the supreme leader of Iran, did not appear in public. It is believed that he was wounded in the attack that took his father’s life, and since then has not appeared in public amid the war that began on February 28 with Israeli and American strikes on Iran.
The mourning ceremonies began on Friday, when the coffins of senior Khamenei, one of his daughters and her 14-month-old child, one of Mojtaba’s sons-in-law and Mojtaba’s wife were laid out for visitation by officials and foreign delegations. Subsequent large ceremonies took place outdoors on Saturday and Sunday ahead of Monday’s large funeral procession.
Subsequently authorities said the body would be transported for further processions to the city of Qom and two Shia shrines in neighboring Iraq, after which it would return to Iran for burial in the medieval shrine complex in Mashhad.
The war ended with a preliminary peace agreement that left the top leadership of Islamic rulers in the country intact and proclaimed victory, with new influence through control of global energy resources via the Strait of Hormuz.
Trump also proclaimed victory, though the goals he set at the outset – destroying Iran’s nuclear and missile capabilities, halting its ability to strike neighbors, and creating conditions for the removal of its leaders – had not yet been achieved.
Over the weekend, Trump said peace talks with Iran were postponed for a week due to the mourning ceremonies.
Israel’s Defense Minister Israel Katz said on Monday that senior Khamenei was killed because of his program to destroy Israel.
Any Iranian leader who again tries to pursue plans to destroy Israel will also be killed.
– Israel Katz
The mourning ceremonies and the accompanying statements underscore the complex regional dynamics and the consolidation of leadership in Iran, as well as the intentions of Israel and the United States regarding actions in the region. At the same time, the country is preparing for further official events and processions related to mourning the leader. Analysts expect that the consequences of these events will affect policy and security dynamics in the region in the coming months.