The plane transporting the coffin of the martyred Leader of the Islamic Revolution, Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei, has landed in Iraq for funeral ceremonies there.
Press TV has cited Iran’s official IRNA news agency as reporting late on Tuesday that the coffins of the martyred members of Ayatollah Khamenei’s family were also on board the plane that arrived at the airport in the central city of Najaf earlier in the day.
The coffins will be taken to funeral processions planned for Wednesday in Najaf and in the holy city of Karbala.
Millions of Iraqis are expected to attend the event, as Ayatollah Khamenei was a respected cleric in Iraq and a source of emulation for millions of Shia Muslims in the Arab country.
Iraqi Prime Minister Ali Al-Zaidi announced Wednesday as a public holiday in Iraq to allow the country to better organize the massive event.
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian had also arrived at Najaf airport to attend the funeral and to hold high-level talks with government officials in the country.
In this regard, Pezeshkian met with Al-Zaidi.
Commander of IRGC’s Al-Quds Force, General Ismail Qaani, also arrived at Najaf International Airport in Iraq.
Ayatollah Khamenei and four members of his family were martyred in a joint US-Israeli attack on his office and residence in Tehran on February 28.
The funeral in Iraq comes after two similar processions in the Iranian capital, Tehran, and in the central city of Qom.
His body is planned to be laid to rest on Thursday at the holy shrine of Imam Reza in his hometown of Mashhad.
Source: MEHR News Agency