Funeral ceremonies for Khamenei held in Najaf, Karbala; body departs for Iran

NAJAF, Iraq — Iraq's Prime Ministerial Office chief and head of the mourning committee, Ihsan Yasin al-Awadi, said funeral ceremonies for Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in Najaf and Karbala have been successfully completed, with the body now en route to the Islamic Republic of Iran. In an official statement, Awadi said coordination was carried out with Iranian authorities, and that local administrations, the holy shrines, the Joint Operations Command, and security and service units were all involved in the process. Awadi said the mourning committee set up specialized subcommissions, prepared flexible scenarios and declared a comprehensive mobilization. He added that preliminary unofficial figures indicated the turnout in Najaf and Karbala exceeded 10 million participants, and that the ceremonies concluded without incident. The statement expressed gratitude to security, health, service and volunteer units, including the Popular Mobilization Forces (Hashd al-Shaabi). It said Khamenei's body, along with the remains of four family members described as martyrs, departed from Najaf International Airport at 08:30 a.m. on July 9, 2026, bound for the Iranian city of Mashhad.