Iranians mourning Ayatollah Ali Khamenei [EPA=Yonhap News Agency file photo]Iranian authorities have decided to hold the funeral for former Supreme Leader Ayatollah Seyed Ali Khamenei, who was killed in a surprise air strike by the United States and Israel, starting on the 4th of next month (local time), state-run Iranian media including IRIB and IRNA reported on the 13th.

According to an announcement by the Iranian government's 'Martyr Imam Mujahid's Ascension of Blood Commemoration Headquarters', a farewell ceremony where citizens will bid farewell to the body of Ayatollah Khamenei will first be held at the Imam Khomeini Mosalla (Grand Mosque) in the capital Tehran on the 4th and 5th of next month.

Following this, funeral processions and ceremonies will continue in Tehran on the 6th and in Qom, the holy city of Shia Islam, on the 7th.

The final funeral will be held on the 9th in Mashhad, Ayatollah Khamenei's hometown and a holy city of Shia Islam, where his body will be interred at the shrine of Imam Reza, revered by Shia Muslims. Ayatollah Khamenei is also sometimes referred to by the Persian word 'Mujahid', meaning 'warrior' in Iran.

Ayatollah Khamenei died with his family on February 28th, the first day of the war, in a bombing by the United States and Israel. His official funeral will commence 126 days after his death.

Following the death of Ayatollah Khamenei, his son, Mojtaba Khamenei (57), was elected as his successor as Supreme Leader.

Photo of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in Tehran [WANA/Reuters=Yonhap News Agency file photo]

The funeral schedule for Ayatollah Khamenei comes at a time when a memorandum of understanding (MOU) for peace between the United States and Iran is reportedly imminent.

Abbas Araghchi, Iran's Foreign Minister, who has been part of Iran's negotiation delegation, stated the previous day that the agreement with the United States had entered its final stages and had received approval from the leadership, including the Supreme Leader.

Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, who has been mediating the peace talks between the United States and Iran, tweeted on the 13th, "The final agreement is expected within the next 24 hours, and we are preparing to proceed with the electronic signature of the agreement immediately."

Coincidentally, July 4th, when the funeral schedule begins, coincides with the 250th anniversary of American Independence Day. Attention is focused on whether Mojtaba, who has not appeared in public since his election as Supreme Leader, will make an appearance to mark this occasion.

Iranian authorities had initially planned the funeral for March but postponed it due to the ongoing war. Instead, they held a large-scale memorial event nationwide on April 9th, the 40th day after his death.

Ayatollah Ali Khamenei [AFP=Yonhap News Agency file photo]

Ayatollah Khamenei, who died at his residence in Tehran at the age of 86 in an air strike by the United States and Israel, was a figure who ruled Iran's theocratic regime with an iron fist from its apex for 37 years.

He led the Iranian Islamic Revolution alongside Ruhollah Khomeini in 1978 and, after overthrowing the Pahlavi dynasty the following year, succeeded in establishing the Islamic Republic of Iran. Upon the death of the first Supreme Leader, Khomeini, in 1989, he succeeded him to become the second Supreme Leader.