Tehran- The Iranian capital is dressed in black in preparation for bidding farewell to former Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, who was killed in an American-Israeli bombing of his country more than four months ago, and its atmosphere ranged between official mourning and Ashura rituals.
Tehran is preparing to receive between 15 and 20 million participants, in a funeral that the authorities described as “the largest of its kind in the country’s history,” and which will extend for about 4 days inside the capital and about a week in several regions inside and outside the country.
The popular farewell begins with Khamenei’s body, tomorrow, Saturday, in the Imam Khomeini prayer hall in central Tehran, over a period of two days, with the capital witnessing the main funeral ceremonies next Monday, then moving on Tuesday to the city of Qom, south of the capital, before being transported next Wednesday to the cities of Najaf and Karbala in Iraq, before returning to the city of Mashhad in northeastern Iran next Thursday, where he will be buried at the Razavi Shrine there.
Logistics movement
During a field tour by Al Jazeera Net in a number of public squares and main streets in Tehran, the preparations appear clear, as dozens of processions were set up in the streets of the city to provide services to mourners, and places were allocated to accommodate those arriving from other provinces, so the processions, husseiniyas, some schools, sports halls, and internal departments of universities were turned into places for shelter.
Hundreds of cars bearing license plates from various governorates also flocked to the capital to participate in the farewell and funeral ceremonies, while others rushed to leave the city after announcing an official holiday that will last from tomorrow, Saturday, until next Tuesday, and usually extends until Friday of next week.
For their part, the authorities organizing the ceremony allocated large areas to receive participants from other provinces, with directional signs identifying parking lots and shelter areas distributed throughout the greater city of Tehran.
Dozens of religious processions – which are familiar tents for providing services for Husseini funerals during Muharram and other religious occasions – also spread out in the main squares and streets to provide food and drink to the mourners.
The giant Iranian flags that used to decorate public squares and bridges are almost completely replaced these days with black flags with a few Iranian flags in the middle. One of the large banners bore a picture of the late Khamenei and read, “With a closed fist, we seek revenge for his blood.”
This comes in the context of the committee responsible for the farewell and funeral ceremony of Khamenei’s body adopting the slogan “We must rise,” which appears on all billboards and banners, and the “closed fist” as the official symbol of the ceremony.
Slogans of revenge
In the famous “Islamic Revolution” square in the center of the Iranian capital, a giant mural appears that brings together the “martyrs of the Karbala incident” with dead Iranians under a tent, bearing the slogan “In Hussein’s tent, we demand revenge and sacrifice our nation’s lives.”
In front of the mural, Sarah (34 years old), a government employee, stood with emotion and said, “This painting is not just words and drawings. It reflects what is in our hearts today, as if the scene is telling us that the blood that was shed in Karbala centuries ago is the same that requires revenge today. We feel that we are part of one epic.”
She explained to Al Jazeera Net, “Avenging Khamenei’s blood is a legitimate and national mandate that brought millions of residents of other provinces here. The martyr leader carried the banner of resistance for decades, and today it is our turn to carry it after him.”
On our way to the famous Vali Asr Square, we spotted another mural on Keshavarz Street, on which a picture of Khamenei was painted next to the Iranian flag, and next to it was written, “An oath by the blood of the Supreme Leader, we will stand until the end.” Some passers-by also raised pictures of Khamenei on which was written, “The Martyr Master of Iran.”
Al Jazeera Net polled the opinions of a number of those who were carrying Iranian flags and black flags and chanting slogans rejecting peace with America and Israel.
Preparations
In Vali Asr Square, we spotted a young woman riding a platform and holding an Iranian flagpole. It turned out that this platform had been erected since the first days of the Ramadan war, and volunteers took turns raising the national flag around the clock, transforming the continuity of this popular initiative into a field landmark amid the ongoing preparations for the funeral of the late leader.
For his part, Hajj Ramadan (68 years old), who is retired, told Al Jazeera Net, “The former guide was a father to everyone, and his blood will not be in vain whether the state takes on this mission or abandons it. We will pursue the Trump and Netanyahu duo wherever they are, and turn their lives into hell.”
In turn, his wife Batoul (63 years old), who came with him from Isfahan Province to the capital, did not hide her deep emotion, telling Al Jazeera Net: “This is not just a funeral. It is a new pledge of allegiance to the path drawn by our leader. I came to say goodbye and to prove that Iran will remain despite all the wounds.”
In the streets leading to the Grand Mosque of Imam Khomeini, public squares were prepared to receive large crowds. Preparations included deploying hospitals, ambulances, and service committees to provide assistance to mourners and deal with any emergency, according to what Farzad (58 years old), one of those in charge of the service tents near Vali Asr Square, confirmed. He explained that all operations are taking place within a unified operations room in coordination with the security forces and executive authorities.
On the diplomatic level, Farzad confirmed to Al Jazeera Net that “a special committee from the Iranian Ministry of Foreign Affairs has made qualitative arrangements to receive official delegations coming from outside the country, in proportion to the status enjoyed by the late leader, in addition to the official keenness to demonstrate the extent of regional and international solidarity with the Islamic Republic in this ordeal.”
According to observers, this ceremony has turned into a political, religious and popular event, which the Iranian state is keen to record as one of its most prominent historical chapters and to send a strong message at home and abroad, stating that “the Islamic Republic is continuing on its path despite all the challenges.”
