[Today's Prayer] Iran to Hold Funeral for Khamenei, Killed in Explosion, in Mid-June... 15–20 Million Expected to Attend

The funeral of former Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who was killed in a U.S.-Israeli airstrike in February, will be held in the middle of this month.

According to Iran's semi-official Tasnim, Mehr, and ISNA news agencies on the 3rd (local time), Khamenei's funeral is expected to take place between the latter part of Dhu al-Hijjah, the final month of the Islamic calendar, and the early part of Muharram, the first month of the new year. This corresponds to mid-June on the Gregorian calendar.

Mohammad Amin Tavakolizadeh, Deputy Mayor of Tehran in charge of social and cultural affairs, stated that the funeral will be held over three days in the three major cities of Tehran, Qom, and Mashhad within the next two weeks.

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Khamenei's body will be transferred from Tehran to the holy city of Qom in central Iran and then finally buried beside the shrine of Imam Reza (the eighth religious leader in Shia Islam) in Mashhad in northeastern Iran.

The funeral will be overseen by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), the elite force that protects Iran's theocratic system.

Deputy Mayor Tavakolizadeh predicted that "a crowd of 15 to 20 million people is expected to gather," and that large numbers of pilgrims will also come from neighboring countries such as Pakistan, Afghanistan, India, Bangladesh, and Kashmir.

On February 28, the first day of the U.S. and Israeli operation against Iran called "Great Wrath," Khamenei was eliminated in an airstrike on his office in Tehran. If the funeral is held in mid-June, it will be three and a half months after his death.

Since the United States and Iran have not yet agreed to end the war, it remains to be seen whether the funeral can proceed as planned. Iran had originally intended to hold Khamenei's funeral in Tehran in early March but suddenly postponed it and only held a memorial service on April 9 marking the 40th day after his death.

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Source: Nate News 

"I will say of the LORD, He is my refuge and my fortress: my God; in him will I trust." (Psalm 91:2)

We hear the news that the funeral of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the former Supreme Leader of Iran who was killed in a U.S.-Israeli airstrike this February, will be held in three major cities of Iran within the next two weeks and that large numbers of pilgrims will attend.

May You reveal to the souls of Iran, who still grieve the death of the supreme leader who ruled Iran under an Islamic theocratic system for 37 years, the wickedness of Islam and the falsehoods that portray Ayatollah Ali Khamenei as a martyr.

May they come to realize, even now, that the beginning of Iran's suffering was the Islamic theocratic system. In a situation where the war has not ceased, may the Holy Spirit turn the hearts of the people of Iran so that they will not foolishly risk their lives in order to gather for the funeral.

As Iran's leaders, even delaying the funeral for three and a half months, seek to use this occasion to reestablish their shaken leadership in Iran and further solidify the Islamic theocratic system, may all these schemes be exposed, and may Iranian youth arise who can discern through the gospel.

For this purpose, may the church in Iran understand the grieving heart of God and boldly proclaim Jesus Christ, the true Savior. May they trust that Jesus alone is Iran's refuge and fortress and rely upon Him in all things concerning Iran.

May the global church also preach the gospel to the Iranian people, bear together the suffering and fears of the local Iranian church, and serve through prayer and worship, proclaiming victory.

Thus, may Iran behold the greatness of God, who is the sovereign ruler of history and the One who governs Iran. May Iran become a nation that exalts only the name of Christ, confesses its commitment to follow the Lord, and experiences revival.