Millions converged in Tehran on Monday to mourn Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the former supreme leader, amid widespread calls for vengeance following his assassination early in the conflict initiated by the United States and Israel.
Massive throngs gathered as a truck bearing the Ayatollah's coffin traversed the heavily congested streets of the capital. Procession participants carried placards featuring Ayatollah Khamenei's image and symbols of defiance, including a clenched fist.
Mourners also displayed portraits of President Trump and Vice President JD Vance marked with crosshairs. A prominent slogan, visible in English, declared "There will be blood," accompanying an image of Mr. Trump.
Iranian officials employed water cannons to help cool the assembled crowds, who were waving flags amid temperatures exceeding 90 degrees Fahrenheit. The week-long funeral arrangements have been meticulously staged by the government, intended to both honor a leader who suppressed internal dissent and advanced Iran's hardline Islamist and anti-Western agenda, and to project an image of national solidarity and resistance.
Ayatollah Khamenei had been in power for over 37 years before his death on February 28, the inaugural day of the U.S.-Israeli offensive. A tentative ceasefire is currently in effect between the United States and Iran, although negotiations for a durable peace accord have been suspended until the conclusion of the funeral observances.
