The coffin with the body of Ayatollah Khamenei was transported from Iran to Iraq. Local Shiites are bidding farewell to him
The coffin with the body of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was transported to Iraq, where mourning ceremonies attended by thousands of people took place. After several days of farewells in Iran, the coffin of the country's former supreme leader was delivered to Najaf. At the local airport, it was met by representatives of Iraqi authorities and Shiite religious figures. Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian also came to the neighboring country for the ceremony, Reuters writes .
During the mourning procession, the vehicle carrying the coffin passed through the streets of Najaf, where large crowds of people had gathered. Participants held portraits of Khamenei, state flags of Iran and Iraq, as well as flags of pro-Iranian armed formations. Some of those present chanted anti-American and anti-Israeli slogans.
After Najaf, the procession is expected to head to the city of Karbala, and then the coffin will be returned to Iran. The burial is scheduled in Mashhad on July 9.
The mourning ceremony in Iran began on July 4. It was previously reported that hundreds of thousands of people came to bid farewell to Khamenei.
Ali Khamenei led Iran for 37 years and died on February 28 on the first day of the war between Iran and US-Israeli forces.
Shiite Muslims make up about 60-65% of Iraq's population. This is the country's demographic majority, and it is in Iraq that the main Shiite shrines of the world are located — the cities of Najaf and Karbala.
After the overthrow of Saddam Hussein's Sunni regime in 2003, Shiites came to power in Baghdad, which completely changed the map of regional influence and opened the door for this country's close rapprochement with Shiite Iran.
Part of Iraqi society regarded Ayatollah Khamenei with deep respect. For these people, he was a religious authority of the highest rank (marja' al-taqlid). A significant portion of believers in Iraq consciously chose him as their spiritual leader.
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