Khamenei’s body leaves Iraq for burial in Iran after funeral ceremonies

NAJAF — The body of Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei left Iraqi airspace on Thursday bound for Mashhad, Iran, after two days of funeral ceremonies in the holy cities of Najaf and Karbala that drew large crowds and senior Iraqi and Iranian officials.

A farewell ceremony was held Thursday morning at Najaf International Airport before the aircraft departed for Iran, where Khamenei will be buried. Najaf Governor Yousif Kanawi said the local government had bid farewell to the coffin at the airport, publishing photographs of local officials gathered before the flight’s departure.

The ceremonies began after Khamenei’s body arrived at the airport on Tuesday night aboard an aircraft accompanied by Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian and Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi. Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi and senior Iraqi political, judicial and religious figures received the delegation before public ceremonies began Wednesday.

Funeral prayers were held at the Imam Ali shrine in Najaf before the coffin was flown by helicopter to Karbala, where a second day of ceremonies took place between the shrines of Imam Hussein and Abbas under heightened security and extensive media coverage.

On Wednesday, the Popular Mobilization Forces’ Middle Euphrates Operations Command organized the Karbala procession along a route from Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis Street through Sayyid Jawda Street to the two shrines. Interior Ministry spokesperson Lt. Gen. Saad Maan said official estimates indicated about three million mourners took part in the Najaf procession, while the Popular Mobilization Forces later said attendance in Karbala exceeded four million.

As crowds continued to gather in Karbala, Governor Nassif Jassim al-Khattabi declared Thursday a public holiday across the governorate, saying the decision was taken because of the continued presence of millions of mourners and to let residents keep providing services to visiting funeral delegations.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi thanked Iraq for hosting the ceremonies, writing on X that he offered “sincere thanks and gratitude to our brotherly Iraq” for what he called a warm reception and a magnificent farewell for the late Iranian leader, with broad public participation. He said ties between Iran and Iraq extended beyond geography and neighborly relations to a shared history, values and “a common destiny,” thanking the Iraqi people for their loyalty.

Iraq declared Wednesday a nationwide public holiday to coincide with the funeral, which concluded before Khamenei’s body departed for Iran on Thursday.