Iran prepares massive funeral for top military, nuclear figures killed in war
TEHRAN: Iran will hold what it described as "historic" funeral proceedings in Tehran on Saturday for 60 killed in its 12-day war with Israel, including top military commanders and nuclear scientists.
The commemorations will begin at 0800 local time (0430 GMT) at Enghelab (Revolution) Square in central Tehran, followed by a funeral procession to Azadi (Freedom) Square, about 11 kilometres (7 miles) away.
"A brief ceremony will be held there, then the processions of the martyrs will go toward Azadi Square," said Mohsen Mahmoudi, head of Tehran's Islamic Development Coordination Council, in a televised interview Friday.
"Tomorrow will be a historic day for Islamic Iran and the revolution," he added.
Among the dead is General Mohammad Bagheri, a major general in Iran's Revolutionary Guards and the second-in-command of the armed forces after supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
He will be buried alongside his wife and daughter, a journalist for a local media outlet, all killed in an Israeli attack.
Nuclear scientist Mohammad Mehdi Tehranchi, also killed in the attacks, will be buried with his wife.
Four women and four children are among those to be honoured at the funeral ceremony.
The war erupted on June 13 when Israel launched strikes that it said were aimed at halting Iran from developing a nuclear weapon – a charge Tehran denies.
Israeli strikes killed at least 30 top commanders of Iran's Revolutionary Guards, according to local media, including its commander-in-chief Hossein Salami and the head of its aerospace forces, Amirali Hajizadeh, who oversaw the country's ballistic missile programme.
So far, there is no indication that Khamenei will attend the funeral on Saturday.
He has previously attended ceremonies for high-ranking Iranian authorities, including late president Ebrahim Raisi, who died in a helicopter crash last year.
The Iranian health ministry says at least 627 civilians were killed and nearly 4,900 wounded in the Israeli attacks.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Malaysia Sun
an hour ago
- Malaysia Sun
Brunei crown prince joins new Islamic year prayer
Xinhua 27 Jun 2025, 18:45 GMT+10 BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN, June 27 (Xinhua) -- Brunei's Crown Prince and Senior Minister at the Prime Minister's Office Haji Al-Muhtadee Billah on Thursday evening graced the end of the Islamic year and new Islamic year 1447 Hijrah prayer ceremony, local media reported. According to the local daily Borneo Bulletin on Friday, the event took place at Jame'Asr Hassanil Bolkiah mosque near the capital, Bandar Seri Begawan, and the gathering served as a moment for prayerful reflection, seeking divine blessings for the nation's continued peace, prosperity, and well-being in the year ahead. The annual national-level hijrah celebration in Brunei was jointly organized by Brunei's Ministry of Religious Affairs, the Ministry of Home Affairs, and the Ministry of Primary Resources and Tourism, according to the Borneo Bulletin. Brunei is located in the northern part of Borneo Island in Southeast Asia and has a rich and long-standing Islamic cultural heritage.
New Straits Times
an hour ago
- New Straits Times
IDF under investigation for alleged war crimes at Gaza aid zones
JERUSALEM: Israel's Military Advocate General has ordered an investigation into possible war crimes over allegations that Israeli forces deliberately fired at Palestinian civilians near Gaza aid distribution sites, Haaretz newspaper reported on Friday. Hundreds of Palestinians have been killed over the past month in the vicinity of areas where food was being handed out, local hospitals and officials have said. Haaretz, a left-leaning Israeli newspaper, quoted unnamed Israeli soldiers as saying they were told to fire at the crowds to keep them back, using unnecessary lethal force against people who appeared to pose no threat. The military told Reuters that the Israel Defence Forces had not instructed soldiers to deliberately shoot at civilians. It added that it was looking to improve "the operational response" in the aid areas and had recently installed new fencing and signs, and opened additional routes to reach the handout zones. Haaretz quoted unnamed sources as saying that the army unit established to review incidents that may involve breaches of international law had been tasked with examining soldiers' actions near aid locations over the past month. The military told Reuters that some incidents were being reviewed by relevant authorities. It added: "Any allegation of a deviation from the law or IDF directives will be thoroughly examined, and further action will be taken as necessary." There is an acute shortage of food and other basic supplies after the nearly two-year-old military campaign by Israel against Hamas fighters in Gaza that has reduced much of the enclave to rubble and displaced most of its two million inhabitants. Thousands of people gather around distribution centres desperately awaiting the next deliveries, but there have been near daily reports of shootings and killings on the approach routes. Medics said six people were killed by gunfire on Friday as they sought to get food in southern Gaza Strip. In all, more than 500 people have died near aid centres operated by the US-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) or in areas where UN food trucks were set to pass since late May, the Gaza health authorities have said. The unnamed Israeli soldiers told Haaretz that military commanders had ordered troops to shoot at the crowds of Palestinians to disperse them and clear the area. During a closed-door meeting with senior Military Advocate General officials this week, legal representatives rejected IDF claims that the incidents were isolated cases, Haaretz reported. There has been widespread confusion about access to the aid, with the army imposing for a time a 6pm to 6am curfew on approach routes to GHF sites. But locals often have to set out well before dawn to have any chance of retrieving food. The Gaza war began when Hamas launched a surprise attack on Israel on Oct 7, 2023, killing nearly 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and taking 251 others hostage into the enclave. In response, Israel launched a military campaign that has killed more than 56,000 Palestinians, the majority of them civilians, according to local health authorities in Gaza.
Barnama
2 hours ago
- Barnama
Lebanon Asks UN To Renew Peacekeepers' Mandate For Another Year
ANKARA, June 27 (Bernama-Anadolu) -- Lebanon announced on Friday that it has formally requested the renewal of the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) for another year beginning on August 31, Anadolu Ajansi reported. The Foreign Ministry said in a statement that the request was submitted in accordance with a decision made by the Lebanese Cabinet on May 14, 2025. A letter was sent to UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres through Lebanon's permanent mission to the UN in New York, it added. bootstrap slideshow It confirmed that Lebanon is 'committed to the presence of UNIFIL and to continuing cooperation with the force deployed in the country's south under UN Security Council Resolution 1701.' The ministry also emphasised Lebanon's demand that 'Israel withdraw from all Lebanese territory it continues to occupy and cease its ongoing violations of Lebanese sovereignty and territorial integrity.' UNIFIL has operated in southern Lebanon since 1978 and was significantly reinforced after the 2006 war between Hezbollah and Israel. Its current mandate expires on August 31, 2025, unless renewed by the UN Security Council. Israeli forces have conducted near-daily attacks in southern Lebanon, claiming to target the Lebanese group Hezbollah's activities despite a ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon that was reached last November. The truce ended months of cross-border warfare between Israel and Hezbollah, which escalated into a full-scale conflict in September. Lebanese authorities have reported nearly 3,000 Israeli violations of the truce, including the deaths of at least 208 people and injuries to more than 500, since the agreement was signed.
