TEHRAN, Iran (AP) 鈥� Iran’s top officials and brothers of the country’s new supreme leader emerged into public view Sunday to attend the funeral prayers for the late , signaling a new confidence in their safety as calls grew for the killing of U.S. President Donald Trump.
Their presence before hundreds of thousands of people in the capital Tehran would have been unthinkable during the Iran war, which saw airstrikes in its opening moments on Feb. 28 kill the 86-year-old Khamenei, his family members and other officials.
Israel also targeted others who appeared publicly during the war, in at least one case to fix their position for a strike.
But still unseen was Iran鈥檚 new supreme leader, . He is believed to be in hiding after reportedly being wounded in the airstrike that killed his father. Israel has threatened to kill him as well as he leads a theocracy now negotiating with the United States over a permanent end to the war and over Iran strangling traffic through the Strait of Hormuz, .
Ziba Naderi, a 42-year-old nurse attending the funeral Sunday, said Iran needed to follow whatever Mojtaba Khamenei commands in regards to the nation.
鈥淚 heard the call for revenge, but our leader should say what we need to do,鈥� she said. 鈥淎nd we must listen to him.鈥�
Funeral includes prayers and calls for revenge
Ayatollah Jafar Sobhani, a 97-year-old Shiite cleric, led the prayers at Tehran’s Grand Mosalla for Khamenei and his late family members.
On hand were Khamenei鈥檚 sons Masoud, Meysam and Mostafa, who haven’t been seen since the war. Revolutionary Guard head Gen. Ahmad Vahidi, who only had been photographed for , could be seen in the crowd by Associated Press journalists, flanked by plainclothes security forces as he wore a black baseball cap.
Iran鈥檚 President Masoud Pezeshkian, Parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf and Esmail Qaani, who leads the Guard鈥檚 expeditionary Quds Force, also attended.
Their appearances came as posters and graffiti at the Grand Mosalla called for the killing of Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Mohammad Rasouli, a poet who emceed the event prior to the prayers, drew calls of 鈥淒eath to America!鈥� and 鈥淒eath to Israel!鈥�
Speaking to the crowd over loudspeakers at the funeral, Rasouli asked, referring to Trump, 鈥淲hy is the most bastard man in the world still alive?鈥�
The question drew cheers from the crowd, and again when Rasouli said 鈥渢he world is no longer a good place for鈥� Trump. It marked the first, direct threat to Trump’s life by an official during the funeral.
Trump threats grow at funeral
The American president was giving a speech at the same time across the world in Washington, D.C., for .
鈥淲e鈥檝e had tremendous success,鈥� Trump said about the U.S. military. 鈥淵ou look at Venezuela, you look at Iran. We wiped it out, wiped out their military.鈥�
A far-larger crowd for the funeral than the day before attended Sunday. Mourners dressed in black walked to the site, carrying banners and flags honoring Khamenei and also calling for Trump’s killing.
鈥淚 came here to shout and seek revenge,鈥� said Gholamreza Sabooni, 29-year-old man who works in a grocery. 鈥淭hey killed our imam, we should kill their leader, Trump.鈥�
U.S. federal authorities have been tracking Iranian threats against Trump and other administration officials for years. That stems from Trump ordering the 2020 , who had led the Quds Force. Iran repeatedly has denied plotting to kill Trump, though hard-line propaganda footage long has .
Trump meanwhile during the war among a variety of other threats.
Funeral postpones talks with US
Khamenei鈥檚 body will be transported to cities in Iran and neighboring Iraq, with authorities planning to drive his casket and others through the streets of Tehran on Monday. Authorities have shut down streets, airspace and daily life for the mourning, which will end Thursday as he is buried at the Imam Reza shrine in Mashhad, Khamenei鈥檚 place of birth.
Authorities offered no attendance count for the event Saturday and Sunday. Other cities across Iran also held mourning ceremonies.
For now, talks over reaching a permanent end to the war are on hold until the end of the funeral. Having a major turnout could prove important as Iran tries to leverage its hold on in negotiations as concern lingers that Israel could attack again.
鈥淥ur foreign policy should not be shaped in a way that allows our martyred leader鈥檚 blood to be dishonored and other countries can afford to do such things, without any serious response from our government and diplomatic system,鈥� mourner Mohammad Reza Sharifi said.
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Gambrell reported from Dubai, United Arab Emirates.
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