At the funeral of assassinated Iranian supreme leader Ali Khamenei in Tehran on Sunday, mourners called for the killing of US President Donald Trump. The event, part of a week of mass processions, blended grief with demands for revenge against the US and Israel, who launched a war on 28 February that killed Khamenei and his family members.
Poet Mohammad Rasouli declared during a recitation: 'From now on the shroud is our garment. I swear by your blood; Trump’s murder is our responsibility.' The crowd cheered enthusiastically. Iran’s ambassador to Armenia, Khalil Shirgholami, posted on X that killing Khamenei had broken 'a bottle of perfume, the fragrance of which has now spread everywhere.'
The funeral prayers, led by 97-year-old cleric Ayatollah Ja’far Sobhani, included readings for Khamenei, his daughter-in-law, and his 14-month-old granddaughter. The absence of the new supreme leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, was conspicuous; he has not appeared in public or recorded a message for three months, unlike his three brothers who stood beside their father’s coffin.
Senior Iranian officials, including IRGC commander Ahmad Vahidi and al-Quds force commander Esmail Qaani, attended, suggesting assurances that a ceasefire precludes an attack on the ceremony. However, US conservative commentator Mark Levin called the funeral 'an opportunity lost,' and Laura Loomer, a Trump confidante, described it as a 'target-rich environment.'
