Iran President invites PM Modi to Khamenei’s funeral, India yet to decide on participation

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian has invited Prime Minister Narendra Modi to attend the funeral ceremony of late Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, people familiar with the matter said on Wednesday.

The funeral ceremonies are scheduled to take place from July 5 to July 9. The Indian government is yet to decide whether Modi will attend the event.

The invitation was conveyed by the Iranian side on Tuesday, according to sources aware of the development.

Khamenei, along with his daughter, son-in-law and grandchild, was killed in joint Israel-US military strikes on February 28. Although Islamic traditions call for burial within 24 hours of death, the funeral was delayed several times due to the ongoing conflict and instability in West Asia.

India had expressed condolences over Khamenei’s death, with Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri visiting the Iranian embassy to sign the condolence book on behalf of the government. External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar also spoke with his Iranian counterpart Seyed Abbas Araghchi following the incident.