Iran Escorts Supreme Leader Khamenei's Coffin with Fighter Jet Amid Tense Security

Iran is preparing to bury its assassinated Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei in his hometown of Mashhad in the northeast of the country. The burial, scheduled for Thursday evening, marks the end of a week of massive mourning processions held across Iran and neighboring Iraq. Footage released by the regime showed an old Iranian fighter jet escorting the cargo plane carrying Khamenei's coffin and the bodies of his family members as it landed at Mashhad airport. The official burial ceremony will take place at the Imam Reza Shrine, the holiest site for Shia Muslims in Iran.

The burial was delayed for four months due to prolonged fighting and is now occurring under heavy security amid recent US airstrikes on Iran. These strikes were retaliation for damage to vessels in the Strait of Hormuz. Hassan Hosseini, governor of Mashhad province, announced on state media that authorities expect around 15 million people to attend the ceremony. Crowds have already filled the streets, waving flags and holding signs calling for revenge against the West.

During the large processions, thousands chanted explicit slogans against the US administration, with some women holding posters threatening then-President Donald Trump. Ali Khamenei, who ruled Iran for about 37 years, was killed on February 28 in a joint US-Israeli airstrike on his Tehran residence. The attack also killed his daughter, son-in-law, granddaughter, and the wife of his son Mojtaba. Mojtaba Khamenei, officially appointed Supreme Leader a week after the assassination, has remained absent from public view since the war began. Three of Ali Khamenei's brothers have represented the family at mourning events. Officials suggest Mojtaba's prolonged absence is due to severe injuries and disfigurement from the same bombing, heightening political tension within Tehran's leadership.