{"id":1822,"date":"2026-07-08T15:51:22","date_gmt":"2026-07-08T15:51:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/arabnewsmonitor.com\/2026\/07\/08\/huge-crowds-flood-iraqs-holy-cities-for-khamenei-funeral-procession\/"},"modified":"2026-07-08T15:51:22","modified_gmt":"2026-07-08T15:51:22","slug":"huge-crowds-flood-iraqs-holy-cities-for-khamenei-funeral-procession","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.arabnewsmonitor.com\/?p=1822","title":{"rendered":"Huge crowds flood Iraq\u2019s holy cities for Khamenei funeral procession"},"content":{"rendered":"<div data-tms-ad-status=\"idle\" data-tms-ad-container class=\"o-ad-container o-ad-container--banner-top o-ad-container--with-shimmer o-ad-container--with-background\">\n<div class=\"o-ad-container__content o-ad-container__content--report-enabled\">\n<div class=\"o-ad-container__label m-block-ad__label--report-enabled\">\n                    <span class=\"o-ad-container__label__text\">Advertising<\/span><br \/>\n                                            <button title=\"Report this ad\" class=\"o-ad-container__content__report-link\" data-tms-ad-report><\/p>\n<p>                        <\/button>\n                                    <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"o-ad-sponsoring\" data-tms-ad-type=\"sponsoring\" data-tms-ad-status=\"disabled\">\n<div class=\"o-ad-sponsoring__wrapper\">\n    <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"t-content t-content--article\" id=\"main-content\">\n<div class=\"t-content__above-sidebar\">\n<h1 class=\"t-content__title a-page-title\">Huge crowds flood Iraq\u2019s holy cities for Khamenei funeral procession<\/h1>\n<div class=\"m-master-tag\">\n<div class=\"a-tag-section\">\n                                    Middle East\n                            <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p class=\"t-content__chapo\">\n                                        The funeral procession of Iran&#8217;s late supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei continued to draw massive crowds as it made its way through the holy cities of Iraq, home to some of the Shia faith&#8217;s most sacred shrines. The six-day funeral ceremony will conclude on Thursday when Khamenei&#8217;s body is returned to Iran for burial in his\u00a0hometown of Mashhad.                <\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"t-content__with-sidebar\">\n<div class=\"t-content__beside-sidebar\" data-article-content>\n<div class=\"t-content__metadata\">\n<div class=\"t-content__dates\">\n<p class=\"m-pub-dates\"><span class=\"m-pub-dates__date\">Issued on: <time datetime=\"2026-07-08T02:19:16+00:00\">08\/07\/2026 &#8211; 04:19<\/time><\/span><span class=\"m-pub-dates__date\">Modified: <time datetime=\"2026-07-08T14:37:45+00:00\">08\/07\/2026 &#8211; 16:37<\/time><\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"a-reading-time\">\n    <span class=\"a-reading-time__icon\" title=\"Reading time\"><\/p>\n<p>    <\/span><br \/>\n    3 min    <span class=\"u-sr-only\">Reading time<\/span>\n<\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"a-share-button\" data-root-share>\n<p>                            <span class=\"a-master-button__label\">Share<\/span><\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"t-content__authors\">\n<div class=\"m-from-author\">\n                    <span class=\"m-from-author__by-label\"><br \/>\n                By:<br \/>\n            <\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"m-author\">\n<div class=\"m-author__name\">\n                                                    <a href=\"\/en\/author\/france-24\/\" title=\"FRANCE 24\" class=\"m-author__name__title\"><br \/>\n                                FRANCE 24<br \/>\n                            <\/a>\n                    <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"o-video-player o-video-player--16x9 t-content__main-media \" data-media-video-d9357252-33ae-42d3-8376-9ec7eec2fff3 data-show-hidden-video-player=\"D9357252-33AE-42D3-8376-9EC7EEC2FFF3\" data-wrapper-video-player data-autoplay-video-link data-youtube-script>\n<div class=\"o-em-consent \">\n<div class=\"o-em-consent__content\">\n<p class=\"o-em-consent__content__text\">To display this content from YouTube, you must enable advertisement tracking and audience measurement.<\/p>\n<p>        <button class=\"a-master-button a-master-button--dark\" data-action=\"accept\"><br \/>\n            Accept<\/p>\n<p>        <\/button><br \/>\n        <button class=\"a-link\" data-action=\"manage\">Manage my choices                <\/p>\n<p><\/button>\n    <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"o-em-adblock\" data-adblock-content>\n<div class=\"o-em-adblock__content\">\n<p class=\"o-em-adblock__content__text\">One of your browser extensions seems to be blocking the video player from loading. To watch this content, you may need to disable it on this site.<\/p>\n<p>            <button class=\"a-master-button a-master-button--dark\" data-action=\"reload\">Try again<\/button>\n    <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<figure class=\"m-item-image m-item-image--16x9 m-item-image--has-caption\">\n<p><img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"auto\" src=\"https:\/\/s.france24.com\/media\/display\/6a8c924a-7a73-11f1-b0e6-005056a97e36\/w:1024\/p:16x9\/4b62a3e4a3ffce83ab48c9f92ffd61d8830781fc.jpg\" srcset=\"https:\/\/s.france24.com\/media\/display\/6a8c924a-7a73-11f1-b0e6-005056a97e36\/w:388\/p:16x9\/4b62a3e4a3ffce83ab48c9f92ffd61d8830781fc.jpg 388w,https:\/\/s.france24.com\/media\/display\/6a8c924a-7a73-11f1-b0e6-005056a97e36\/w:720\/p:16x9\/4b62a3e4a3ffce83ab48c9f92ffd61d8830781fc.jpg 720w,https:\/\/s.france24.com\/media\/display\/6a8c924a-7a73-11f1-b0e6-005056a97e36\/w:1024\/p:16x9\/4b62a3e4a3ffce83ab48c9f92ffd61d8830781fc.jpg 1024w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1076px) 100vw, 1012px\" width=\"1024\" height=\"576\" alt=\"Iraqi officials and senior politicians received the remains of Khamenei on Tuesday night at Najaf international airport\" loading=\"eager\" class=\"a-img \"><figcaption class=\"a-figcaption\">\n    Cover image:            Iraqi officials and senior politicians received the remains of Khamenei on Tuesday night at Najaf international airport.        \u00a9 Media office of senior politician and cleric Ammar al-Hakim via AFP    <\/figcaption><div class=\"m-item-image__overlay-wrapper\">\n                <button class=\"m-main-media-btn\" aria-label=\"Huge crowds flood Iraq\u2019s holy cities for Khamenei funeral procession: Play the video\"><br \/>\n    <span class=\"m-main-media-btn__picto\"><\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"a-circle-loader\">\n<\/div>\n<p><\/button><br \/>\n<time class=\"a-media-time\">01:38<\/time>                <\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<div data-hidden-video-player=\"D9357252-33AE-42D3-8376-9EC7EEC2FFF3\"><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"t-content__body u-clearfix\">\n<p>Huge crowds thronged the streets of Najaf and packed the courtyards of its majestic shrine as they mourned late Iranian supreme leader <a href=\"https:\/\/www.france24.com\/en\/tag\/ayatollah-ali-khamenei\/\" target=\"_self\" class=\"gtm-add-suggested-tag\">Ayatollah Ali Khamenei<\/a> during his funeral procession in <a href=\"https:\/\/www.france24.com\/en\/tag\/iraq\/\" target=\"_self\" class=\"gtm-add-suggested-tag\">Iraq<\/a> Wednesday.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.france24.com\/en\/tag\/iran\/\" target=\"_self\" class=\"gtm-add-suggested-tag\">Iran<\/a> began <a href=\"https:\/\/www.france24.com\/en\/middle-east\/20260706-khamenei-funeral-procession-begins-in-tehran-draws-massive-crowds-of-mourners\" target=\"_self\">six days of public funeral ceremonies<\/a> for Khamenei on Saturday, including a dedicated day in neighbouring Iraq\u00a0\u2013 a Shia powerhouse with close ties to Tehran and home to the faith&#8217;s most sacred shrines.<\/p>\n<p>The Islamic Republic hopes the marathon ceremonies will show strength and unity after the Middle East war, which started with US-Israeli air strikes that killed Khamenei and several of his relatives \u2013 including his 14-month-old granddaughter\u00a0\u2013 on February 28.<\/p>\n<p class=\"a-read-more\"><span class=\"a-read-more__label\">Read more<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.france24.com\/en\/asia-pacific\/20260706-his-resilience-his-words-his-character-mourners-grieve-late-supreme-leader-khamenei\" target=\"_self\" class=\"a-read-more__link\">&#8216;His resilience, his words, his character&#8217;: Mourners grieve late supreme leader Khamenei<\/a><\/p>\n<p>Mohammed al-Bayati, 30, said he would have never missed the funeral &#8220;of the person who challenged the power of America and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.france24.com\/en\/tag\/israel\/\" target=\"_self\" class=\"gtm-add-suggested-tag\">Israel<\/a>&#8220;.<\/p>\n<p>Murtada al-Maliki, 27, who travelled overnight from southern Iraq to attend the funeral in Najaf, said Khamenei &#8220;stood with us against Daesh&#8221;, another name for the Sunni <a href=\"https:\/\/www.france24.com\/en\/tag\/islamic-state-is-group\/\" target=\"_self\">Islamic State group<\/a>, &#8220;and kept Israel in check&#8221;.<\/p>\n<p>After a massive procession in Iran&#8217;s holy city of Qom, Khamenei&#8217;s body was brought Tuesday night to Iraq where authorities declared Wednesday a public holiday.<\/p>\n<p>Since the early morning, despite the scorching heat, vast crowds filled the streets of Najaf, with some people pushing close hoping to touch Khamenei&#8217;s coffin as it rode slowly in the back of a truck en route to the shrine of Imam Ali\u00a0\u2013 the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.france24.com\/en\/tag\/prophet-mohammed\/\" target=\"_self\" class=\"gtm-add-suggested-tag\">Prophet Mohammed<\/a>&#8216;s son-in-law and the first Shia Imam.<\/p>\n<p>There, the call for prayer echoed in the vast courtyards as hundreds of clerics in white and black turbans waited for hours to pray over Khamenei&#8217;s remains.<\/p>\n<p>Inside the shrine, thousands jostled to get closer to the coffin as it was carried away in the mausoleum&#8217;s halls\u00a0\u2013 its last stop in Najaf before being flown to the other holy city of Karbala.<\/p>\n<p>Khamenei&#8217;s funeral will conclude with his burial on Thursday in his hometown of Mashhad in northeast Iran.<\/p>\n<h2>Shrines<\/h2>\n<p>The remains of Khamenei&#8217;s relatives who were killed with him, including his granddaughter, were quietly brought early Wednesday to the shrines of Najaf and Karbala.<\/p>\n<p>Najaf is the main centre of Shia religious seminaries, and is also home to Grand Ayatollah Ali Sistani, Iraq&#8217;s top Shia religious authority.<\/p>\n<div class=\"m-em-image\">\n<figure class=\"m-item-image m-item-image--original m-item-image--has-caption\">\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/s.france24.com\/media\/display\/69913490-7a73-11f1-8468-005056bfb2b6\/w:980\/31b077ca8d97088fc578772003c689138fa18456.jpg\" srcset=\"https:\/\/s.france24.com\/media\/display\/69913490-7a73-11f1-8468-005056bfb2b6\/w:246\/31b077ca8d97088fc578772003c689138fa18456.jpg 246w,https:\/\/s.france24.com\/media\/display\/69913490-7a73-11f1-8468-005056bfb2b6\/w:388\/31b077ca8d97088fc578772003c689138fa18456.jpg 388w,https:\/\/s.france24.com\/media\/display\/69913490-7a73-11f1-8468-005056bfb2b6\/w:720\/31b077ca8d97088fc578772003c689138fa18456.jpg 720w,https:\/\/s.france24.com\/media\/display\/69913490-7a73-11f1-8468-005056bfb2b6\/w:980\/31b077ca8d97088fc578772003c689138fa18456.jpg 980w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1023px) calc(100vw - 32px), (min-width: 1024px) 850px\" alt=\"Khamenei's final burial will take place on Thursday in his hometown of Mashhad in northeast Iran\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"a-img \"><figcaption class=\"a-figcaption\">\n                Khamenei&#8217;s final burial will take place on Thursday in his hometown of Mashhad in northeast Iran.        \u00a9 Ahmad al-Rubaye, AFP    <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p>Many senior Shia clerics have studied, taught or lived there, including Khamenei&#8217;s predecessor Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini.<\/p>\n<p>After Najaf, another procession will take place in Karbala, about 60 kilometres north, ending at the shrines of Imam Hussein and his brother Abbas.<\/p>\n<p>The death of Hussein, the third Shia Imam, in the seventh century remains central to Shia history and draws millions of people from around the world to Karbala and Najaf every year.<\/p>\n<h2>Strong ties<\/h2>\n<p>The bond between Iraq and neighbouring Iran, both Shia-majority countries, runs deep and is shaped by both religion and politics. But ties were not always strong.<\/p>\n<p>In the 1980s, Iraq&#8217;s late ruler <a href=\"https:\/\/www.france24.com\/en\/tag\/saddam-hussein\/\" target=\"_self\" class=\"gtm-add-suggested-tag\">Saddam Hussein<\/a>, who repressed the Shia population, went to war with the Islamic Republic.<\/p>\n<p>But the two countries have become close allies since Saddam&#8217;s fall in 2003 in a US-led invasion and with the rise to power of Shia-dominated governments in Baghdad.<\/p>\n<p>Today, Iran backs influential politicians but also armed groups, some of which joined the Middle East war after Khamenei&#8217;s death in support of Iran, attacking US facilities in Iraq.<\/p>\n<div class=\"m-em-video\">\n<div class=\"m-em-video__title\">Viral AI fakes flood social media as Iran mourns Khamenei<\/div>\n<div class=\"o-video-player o-video-player--16x9\" data-media-video-wbmz566134-f24-en-20260708 data-show-hidden-video-player=\"WBMZ566134-F24-EN-20260708\" data-wrapper-video-player data-youtube-script>\n<div class=\"o-em-consent \">\n<div class=\"o-em-consent__content\">\n<p class=\"o-em-consent__content__text\">To display this content from YouTube, you must enable advertisement tracking and audience measurement.<\/p>\n<p>        <button class=\"a-master-button a-master-button--dark\" data-action=\"accept\"><br \/>\n            Accept<\/p>\n<p>        <\/button><br \/>\n        <button class=\"a-link\" data-action=\"manage\">Manage my choices                <\/p>\n<p><\/button>\n    <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"o-em-adblock\" data-adblock-content>\n<div class=\"o-em-adblock__content\">\n<p class=\"o-em-adblock__content__text\">One of your browser extensions seems to be blocking the video player from loading. To watch this content, you may need to disable it on this site.<\/p>\n<p>            <button class=\"a-master-button a-master-button--dark\" data-action=\"reload\">Try again<\/button>\n    <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<figure class=\"m-item-image m-item-image--16x9 m-item-image--has-caption\">\n<p><img decoding=\"auto\" src=\"https:\/\/s.france24.com\/media\/display\/1070b2e6-7a46-11f1-8596-005056a97e36\/w:1024\/p:16x9\/capture-12678221876a4d678c291772-72427440.jpg\" srcset=\"https:\/\/s.france24.com\/media\/display\/1070b2e6-7a46-11f1-8596-005056a97e36\/w:388\/p:16x9\/capture-12678221876a4d678c291772-72427440.jpg 388w,https:\/\/s.france24.com\/media\/display\/1070b2e6-7a46-11f1-8596-005056a97e36\/w:720\/p:16x9\/capture-12678221876a4d678c291772-72427440.jpg 720w,https:\/\/s.france24.com\/media\/display\/1070b2e6-7a46-11f1-8596-005056a97e36\/w:1024\/p:16x9\/capture-12678221876a4d678c291772-72427440.jpg 1024w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 639px) calc(100vw - 32px), (max-width: 1076px) calc(100vw - 44px), 850px\" width=\"1024\" height=\"576\" alt=\"Truth or Fake\" loading=\"eager\" class=\"a-img \"><figcaption class=\"a-figcaption\">\n    Cover image:            Truth or Fake        \u00a9 France 24    <\/figcaption><div class=\"m-item-image__overlay-wrapper\">\n                <button class=\"m-main-media-btn\" aria-label=\"Viral AI fakes flood social media as Iran mourns Khamenei: Play the video\"><br \/>\n    <span class=\"m-main-media-btn__picto\"><\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"a-circle-loader\">\n<\/div>\n<p><\/button><br \/>\n<time class=\"a-media-time\">05:34<\/time>                <\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<div data-hidden-video-player=\"WBMZ566134-F24-EN-20260708\"><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>Iraq has another strong ally: the US.<\/p>\n<p>For decades, its successive governments have struggled to maintain a delicate balance between the two foes.<\/p>\n<p>Today, the challenge is growing as the US steps up pressure on Iraq to curb Iran&#8217;s influence and disarm Tehran-backed groups.<\/p>\n<p>For mourner Haidar Jaafar, speaking before the funeral, even though he doesn&#8217;t support Iranian policies in Iraq, he &#8220;stands with Iran against the Israeli enemy&#8221;.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;Even those who do not align with Iran&#8221; would attend, he said, because Khamenei was killed &#8220;by Israeli-American hands&#8221;.<\/p>\n<p><em>(FRANCE 24 with AFP)<\/em><\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"o-sidebar\">\n<div class=\"o-sidebar__aside\">\n<div data-tms-ad-status=\"idle\" data-tms-ad-container class=\"o-ad-container o-ad-container--box o-ad-container--with-shimmer\">\n<div class=\"o-ad-container__content o-ad-container__content--report-enabled\">\n<div class=\"o-ad-container__label m-block-ad__label--report-enabled\">\n                    <span class=\"o-ad-container__label__text\">Advertising<\/span><br \/>\n                                            <button title=\"Report this ad\" class=\"o-ad-container__content__report-link\" data-tms-ad-report><\/p>\n<p>                        <\/button>\n                                    <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"t-content__tags t-content__below-sidebar\">\n<div class=\"m-section-title m-section-title--small\">Keywords for this article<\/div>\n<ul class=\"m-tags-list\">\n<li class=\"m-tags-list__tag\">\n                <a href=\"\/en\/tag\/iran\/\" class=\"a-hot-tag\" title=\"Iran\">    Iran<\/a>\n            <\/li>\n<li class=\"m-tags-list__tag\">\n                <a href=\"\/en\/tag\/iraq\/\" class=\"a-hot-tag\" title=\"Iraq\">    Iraq<\/a>\n            <\/li>\n<li class=\"m-tags-list__tag\">\n                <a href=\"\/en\/tag\/ayatollah-ali-khamenei\/\" class=\"a-hot-tag\" title=\"Ayatollah Ali Khamenei\">    Ayatollah Ali Khamenei<\/a>\n            <\/li>\n<li class=\"m-tags-list__tag\">\n                <a href=\"\/en\/tag\/shiite\/\" class=\"a-hot-tag\" title=\"Shiite\">    Shiite<\/a>\n            <\/li>\n<li class=\"m-tags-list__tag\">\n                <a href=\"\/en\/tag\/iran-conflict\/\" class=\"a-hot-tag\" title=\"Iran war\">    Iran war<\/a>\n            <\/li>\n<li class=\"m-tags-list__tag\">\n                <a href=\"\/en\/tag\/israel\/\" class=\"a-hot-tag\" title=\"Israel\">    Israel<\/a>\n            <\/li>\n<li class=\"m-tags-list__tag\">\n                <a href=\"\/en\/tag\/usa\/\" class=\"a-hot-tag\" title=\"USA\">    USA<\/a>\n            <\/li>\n<li class=\"m-tags-list__tag\">\n                <a href=\"\/en\/tag\/grand-ayatollah-ali-al-sistani\/\" class=\"a-hot-tag\" title=\"Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani\">    Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani<\/a>\n            <\/li>\n<\/ul><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Advertising Huge crowds flood Iraq\u2019s holy cities for Khamenei funeral procession Middle East The funeral&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":1823,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1822","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-middle-east"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.arabnewsmonitor.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1822","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.arabnewsmonitor.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.arabnewsmonitor.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.arabnewsmonitor.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1822"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.arabnewsmonitor.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1822\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.arabnewsmonitor.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/1823"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.arabnewsmonitor.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1822"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.arabnewsmonitor.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1822"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.arabnewsmonitor.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1822"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}