Iran uses Khamenei funeral to project unity and revenge
Ceremonies for Ayatollah Ali Khamenei have blended state messaging with Shia symbolism, according to Al Jazeera.
By Lucas Ferreira · Science & Environment Writer
3 min read
Iranian authorities are using Ayatollah Ali Khamenei’s funeral ceremonies to cast his death as martyrdom and to rally supporters around unity, resistance and revenge, Al Jazeera reported from Tehran. The week of events also links the former supreme leader’s legacy to his son Mojtaba Khamenei, who became head of state in March after his father was killed in a US-Israeli airstrike on February 28, according to Al Jazeera.
Al Jazeera reported that the funeral began with three days of mourning in Tehran before a procession planned to move through cities in Iran and Iraq. Khamenei served as supreme leader from 1989 until his death, according to the report.
The official slogan for the ceremonies in Iran is “We must rise”, Al Jazeera reported. For Arabic-language and international audiences, authorities have used an Arabic phrase meaning “Rise for God”; Al Jazeera said both versions draw from a Quranic verse urging Muslims to stand for a divine cause.
Symbols of grief and retaliation
A clenched-fist image of Khamenei against red and black has become a central visual theme of the ceremonies, according to Al Jazeera. The report said the image draws on a March 12 text message attributed to Mojtaba Khamenei, who has not appeared or spoken publicly since taking power.
That message said Mojtaba had heard that the fist of Khamenei’s “healthy hand” had been clenched, Al Jazeera reported. Khamenei had lost the use of his right arm after severe shrapnel and burn injuries in a 1981 assassination attempt, according to the outlet.
Al Jazeera said Mojtaba Khamenei is expected to stay away from his father’s ceremonies because of security concerns. The report said the black-and-red palette has been presented as combining mourning, martyrdom and a demand for revenge.
Iran’s Supreme National Security Council said Sunday that mourners were voicing two messages: “Resistance against the enemies, and revenge for the blood of Iran’s martyred leader,” according to Al Jazeera. The council’s statement tied the funeral crowds to the state’s broader message of confrontation with the United States and Israel.
At the Grand Mosalla, Tehran’s largest religious complex, a large red flag was unfurled while Khamenei’s body lay in state on Saturday and Sunday, Al Jazeera reported. The flag carried the Arabic phrase “O avengers of Hussein”, linking Khamenei’s killing to Karbala, where the Prophet Muhammad’s grandson was killed about 1,300 years ago, according to the report.
A route through Shia centers
The funeral route also carries political and religious meaning, Al Jazeera reported. It begins in Tehran and passes through Qom, Najaf and Karbala before burial in Mashhad at the shrine of Imam Reza, according to the outlet.
Al Jazeera said Qom is central to clerical legitimacy in Iran and was the site of a major protest against the Pahlavi dynasty in support of Ruhollah Khomeini before the 1979 revolution. Najaf, in Iraq, connects the procession to Imam Ali, the first of the 12 imams revered by Shia Muslims, according to the report.
The ceremonies have also featured delegations from groups aligned with Tehran, Al Jazeera reported. Officials from Hezbollah, Hamas, Islamic Jihad and Yemen’s Houthis were received in Tehran on Friday during state-run events honoring Khamenei, according to the outlet.
Al Jazeera reported that each delegation stood before Khamenei’s casket as a state-backed eulogist read a Quranic verse. The verses chosen for Hamas, Hezbollah and Pakistan conveyed loyalty, steadfastness and devotion, while the verse read for a Saudi delegation referred to the Battle of Badr and drew attention in Arabic-language media, according to Al Jazeera.
This story draws on original reporting from Al Jazeera.