MILLIONS IN IRAQ MOURN KHAMENEI

The funeral procession for the late Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Ali Khamenei continued in Najaf and Karbala (Iraq) yesterday with an outpouring similar to what was seen in Tehran and Qom in Iran.

Iraq’s Popular Mobilization Forces announced that 2.3 million people participated in the procession in Najaf alone, before it moved on to Karbala, where crowds estimated to number 4 million people met the funeral cortege.

On Tuesday evening, Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi received the bodies of Khamenei and members of his family at Najaf International Airport, reported Shafaq News.

Iran’s Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) Quds Force commander Esmail Qaani, and senior Iranian officials also arrived to participate in the ceremonies.

A wide range of Iraqi political, religious, tribal and community figures attended the reception ceremony, including leaders of the Iran-aligned Coordination Framework, the largely parliamentary bloc that governs Iraq.