Tens of thousands attend President Raisi's funeral in Tehran
World
Iranian Supreme Leader Khamenei leads funeral prayers for Raisi, FM Amirabdollahian
TEHRAN (Dunya News) – The funeral prayers for Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi, Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian and their entourage were offered in Tehran on Wednesday.
Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei led prayers for Raisi and his companions, as tens of thousands of Iranians flocked to the streets of Tehran to join the funeral procession.
In the centre of the city, people holding portraits of Raisi gathered in and around the University of Tehran, where Khamenei led prayers.
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Raisi's helicopter crashed on Sunday on a fog-shrouded mountainside in northern Iran on the way to the city of Tabriz after the group attended the inauguration of a dam project on the border with Azerbaijan.
A huge search and rescue operation was launched, involving help from Turkiye, Russia and the European Union. State television announced Raisi's death early on Monday.
In the capital, huge banners went up hailing the late president as "the martyr of service", while others bade "farewell to the servant of the disadvantaged".
Tehran residents received phone messages urging them to "attend the funeral of the martyr of service".
The processions, which are being attended by foreign dignitaries, were planned to set off from the university and head to the vast Enghelab Square in the city centre, according to state media.
BURIAL IN MASHHAD
Funeral rites for the late president and his entourage began on Tuesday with tens of thousands of black-clad mourners in attendance in the city of Tabriz and the Shia clerical centre of Qom.
From Tehran, the bodies will be moved to South Khorasan province before being transferred to Raisi's home city of Mashhad in the northeast, where he will be buried on Thursday evening after funeral rites at the Imam Reza shrine.
Khamenei, who wields ultimate authority in Iran, has declared five days of national mourning and assigned vice president Mohammad Mokhber, 68, as caretaker president until the June 28 election for Raisi's successor.
