TEHRAN, July 1. /Dunyo IA/. Iran and Iraq are set to hold six-day large-scale mourning ceremonies for the late Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, reports Dunyo IA correspondent, citing the Iranian news agency “Tasnim.”

Ali Akbar Pourjamshidian, Deputy Interior Minister of Iran and Head of the Headquarters for Organizing the Funeral Ceremony, said at a press conference in Tehran that more than 30 countries and religious leaders from over 90 countries have expressed readiness to attend the farewell ceremonies.

Official spokesperson of the Iranian Foreign Ministry Esmail Baghaei also confirmed the holding of events on the occasion of the death of the Supreme Leader and the readiness of officials from both regional and other countries to participate.

According to a source within Foreign Ministry of Uzbekistan, on July 3 an Uzbek delegation led by the Speaker of the Legislative Chamber of the Oliy Majlis of Uzbekistan, Nuriddin Ismoilov, will visit Iran and take part in the ceremonies.

It is worth noting that the mourning events will begin in Tehran on July 4 at the Mosalla complex. From that time, the venue will be open for mass farewells. The following day, July 5, a funeral prayer will be held there. A large-scale mourning procession is also planned in the capital. Ceremonies will also take place in other cities of the country, including Qom and Mashhad. Separate events are scheduled in the holy Shiite cities of Iraq – Najaf and Karbala. The final burial of the Supreme Leader will take place in Mashhad on July 9.

According to Ali Akbar Pourjamshidian, a unified national headquarters has been established to coordinate the events both inside Iran and abroad. Iraq has also formed its own coordination center for organizing mourning processions and receiving the body.

It is reported that the total number of participants in the mourning events may reach millions of people. Esmail Baghaei described these ceremonies as “historic and important event” in the coming days in Iran, the West Asia region, and beyond.

It should be noted that the official farewell to Ayatollah Ali Khamenei is taking place almost four months after his death as a result of the first strikes by U.S. and Israeli forces on Iran on February 28.

The four-month delay is directly linked to the continuation of the conflict in the region, attempts at a ceasefire, and subsequent negotiations, which resulted in an agreement with the United States to halt strikes.

The Iranian side stated that the ceremony is now scheduled during a period of relative de-escalation: Iran and the United States are suspending mutual strikes while negotiations continue on a memorandum of understanding with the involvement of mediators.

The Foreign Ministry spokesperson warned at the conference that Washington’s failure to abide by its commitments would inevitably have negative consequences. “We will not leave any action unanswered. Any action against Iran will face an immediate and decisive response,” he said.

Photo credit: Reuters