Iranian passenger train services between Tehran and Mashhad were temporarily suspended following a reported US strike on a railway bridge connecting the two cities, state broadcaster Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting (IRIB) claimed.
“Following the criminal US attack early this morning on a section of the Tehran-Mashhad railway, passenger train services have been disrupted,” IRIB posted on X/Twitter on Thursday.
Passengers stranded due to the disruption reportedly began chanting, “Iranians do not accept humiliation, even at the cost of their own lives.”
Repair teams are currently working to fix the damage and restore the route, and other arrangements are being made to transport passengers to Mashhad by road, according to IRIB.
The transportation disruption comes as mourners travel to farewell Iran’s former supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, before he is scheduled to be laid to rest in the city of Mashhad.
The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) allegedly claimed on Thursday that the US strike on the railway was a deliberate attempt to overshadow Khamenei’s burial, as reported by Iranian state media.
Iran’s state-organized funeral processions, which began last week, serve both as a religious commemoration and a demonstration of continuity for the Islamic Republic following the death of the leader who ruled Iran for nearly four decades.
The week-long procession, which carried Khamenei’s body, included public events in Qom, Najaf, and Karbala – important Shiite centers in Iran and Iraq – before reaching the final destination of Mashhad, home to the country’s holiest pilgrimage shrine.
Reuters contributed to this report.