Iranian FM Holds Talks with Iraq on Khamenei's Funeral

TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - The Iranian Foreign Minister stated on Sunday, June 2, 2026, that the country is coordinating with Iraq. This coordination is to establish a special mechanism for organizing the funeral ceremony for Iran's Supreme Leader, Ali Khamenei, at the Shia holy sites in Iraq.

Abbas Araghchi's statement was made during a press conference with his Iraqi counterpart, Fuad Hussein. This was revealed during his visit to the Iraqi capital, Baghdad, without providing further details about the ceremony, as reported by Anadolu.

Prior to commencing official meetings, Araghchi laid a wreath at the memorial to honor Iran's General Qassem Soleimani and Iraqi militia commander Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis, who were killed in a U.S. drone strike near Baghdad Airport in January 2020.

Iran has announced a six-day series of funeral ceremonies for Khamenei in July. His body is expected to be taken to the holy cities of Najaf and Karbala in Iraq before returning to Iran to be buried in Mashhad.

Massive Security Operation

Iran is preparing an unprecedented large-scale security operation for the funeral of Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei. As reported by Iran International, this aims to prevent a repeat of the deadly stampede incidents that marked the funerals of Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini in 1989 and General Ghasem Soleimani in 2020.

More than four months after Khamenei's death, authorities stated that he will be buried on July 9, following a five-day series of ceremonies across Iran and Iraq.

The considerable delay, according to officials, reflects wartime conditions and security concerns. It also highlights the political and logistical complexities of the funeral procession for the longest-serving Supreme Leader of the Islamic Republic.

This funeral will also be the first major state ceremony under the leadership of Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei. This will be a crucial test for the new leadership's ability to demonstrate authority and maintain order.

The body will lie in state for three days at Tehran's Mosalla Prayer Complex before a funeral procession through the capital.

The body will then be taken to the Shia holy cities of Najaf and Karbala in Iraq before returning to Iran for ceremonies in Qom and burial in Mashhad, Khamenei's birthplace, specifically at the shrine complex of Imam Reza, the eighth Imam in Shia Islam.

Officials have not announced who will lead the funeral prayers, which traditionally are one of the most symbolic moments in the ceremony.

If Mojtaba Khamenei- who has not appeared in public since his father's death- participates, some observers believe he may lead the prayers directly, although officials have not indicated whether this will happen.

Security as Top Priority

Iranian officials have repeatedly emphasized that crowd control and security will be their top priority.

Gholamhossein Mozaffari, the Governor of Razavi Khorasan Province- where Khamenei will be buried- suggested that helicopters might be deployed at some stages of the operation to help control the crowd and ensure the safe transfer of the casket.

It is unclear whether these measures will only be implemented in Mashhad or throughout the series of ceremonies.

Protecting high-ranking officials, controlling the crowd, and transporting the casket through several cities in two countries will likely require one of the largest security operations in the history of the Islamic Republic.

First Vice President Mohammad Reza Aref referred to Khamenei's funeral as the "most important event of the 21st century." This reflects the political and symbolic importance that the authorities attribute to this event.

Lessons from Khomeini's Funeral

Iran's cautious approach largely stems from the chaos during the funeral of the founder of the Islamic Republic, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, after his death on June 3, 1989.

His body lay in state at Mosalla, Tehran, before the funeral prayers were led by Grand Ayatollah Mohammad Reza Golpayegani.

However, the following day, hundreds of thousands of mourners surged toward Khomeini's casket as it was being carried to the burial site. Security forces lost control as the crowd tried to touch the casket, resulting in damage to the casket and the shroud covering the body.

Authorities were forced to evacuate the body using helicopters and return it to Jamaran to replace the shroud and postpone the burial until the next day.

Government media claimed that the number of mourners reached around 10 million people, although foreign estimates were much lower. Many people were reported injured, and some were believed to have died in the stampede. However, no official figures on the number of casualties were ever released.

Khomeini was initially buried in a simple grave near the Behesht-e Zahra cemetery in Tehran. The location was later transformed into a sprawling mausoleum complex.

Other Tragedies

The funeral of Qasem Soleimani- who was killed in a U.S. drone strike near Baghdad Airport on January 3, 2020- became the largest state funeral in Iran since Khomeini's funeral.

His body was transported through several cities in Iraq and Iran before arriving in his hometown, Kerman. There, a stampede and the collapse of road barriers killed at least 56 people and injured over 200, forcing authorities to postpone the funeral procession.

The two disasters during Khomeini's and Soleimani's funerals continue to influence how Iran plans large-scale state ceremonies.

By prioritizing crowd control, meticulous procession arrangements, and extra-tight security, the authorities appear determined to ensure that Khamenei's funeral will be remembered not for chaos but as evidence of the country's ability to manage one of the most crucial events in the history of the Islamic Republic.

Read: Iran, US Clash Over Reports of New Doha Peace Talks

Click here to get the latest news updates from Tempo on Google News