Why Mojtaba Khamenei Did Not Attend His Father's Funeral Ceremony

While farewell ceremonies for the late Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei are ongoing in Iran, the absence of his son and current Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei from the ceremony has sparked widespread discussion.

The New York Times reported that a funeral prayer for Ali Khamenei is planned to be held in Tehran on July 5, with farewell ceremonies continuing in several cities across the country until July 9. However, as of now, Mojtaba Khamenei has not appeared in public.

Akbar Purjamshidiyan, head of the funeral organizing committee, had earlier stated that Mojtaba's participation in the ceremony was his personal decision. Nevertheless, many of his supporters had hoped to see the new Supreme Leader at the farewell ceremony with his father.

According to sources, serious security threats were the main reason for his not appearing in public. Two sources close to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps of Iran indicated that due to the risk of being targeted by Israel or having his location identified, Mojtaba Khamenei's participation in the ceremony was deemed inadvisable.

At the same time, sources noted that Mojtaba Khamenei had expressed a desire to participate in certain stages of his father's funeral ceremony. In particular, he reportedly wanted to attend the funeral ceremony planned for July 9 at the Imam Reza shrine in Mashhad and to pray for his father.

It is worth recalling that Ali Khamenei's death as a result of the US and Israeli airstrikes in late February has been officially confirmed. The farewell ceremony, initially planned for March, was postponed to July due to the expected large number of participants and organizational preparations.

Although Mojtaba Khamenei was elected as Iran's new Supreme Leader in March, he has not yet made any public appearances due to injuries sustained in the attacks. Until now, his addresses have been read aloud on television or distributed as written statements.