Ali Khamenei’s body reaches Qom after massive Tehran funeral; focus shifts to missing successor Mojtaba

The body of Iran’s late Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei arrived in the holy city of Qom on Monday evening after a massive funeral procession in Tehran that drew huge crowds of mourners and senior Iranian officials.

The procession saw a truck carrying Khamenei’s body, along with the coffins of four family members killed in a February 28 US-Israeli strike, move slowly through Tehran as mourners dressed in black showered the coffins with flower petals. Similar ceremonies are scheduled in Qom on Tuesday, followed by processions in the Iraqi holy cities of Najaf and Karbala before Khamenei is buried in his hometown of Mashhad on Thursday.

Iranian state media described the turnout as being on par with the funeral of Ruhollah Khomeini in 1989, with crowds carrying red flags symbolising vengeance and chanting anti-US slogans.

President Masoud Pezeshkian, Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi and other top officials joined the funeral, while former president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad also made a rare public appearance.

Spotlight on Mojtaba Khamenei’s absence

Despite the large public display of mourning, all eyes remained on Khamenei’s son and successor, Mojtaba Khamenei, who has not appeared in public since before being appointed to succeed his father.

His continued absence has fuelled speculation about his health after reports that he was wounded in an earlier airstrike. Iranian authorities have not confirmed whether he will attend the remaining funeral ceremonies.

The final burial in Mashhad is expected to be closely watched for any public appearance by Mojtaba, as Iran seeks to project unity following the recent conflict and a period of domestic unrest. Authorities have also tightened arrangements to prevent a repeat of the deadly crowd crush that marred Khomeini’s funeral in 1989.