Millions of Iranians have gathered in Tehran to begin a week-long series of funeral ceremonies for former supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. The 86-year-old leader was assassinated on February 28 in a joint operation by the United States and Israel, an event that triggered a regional war and global economic turmoil.

Having ruled since 1989, many Iranians had never known another leader. Thousands of mourners assembled by sunrise outside Tehran's Imam Khomeini Grand Mosalla Mosque to pay their respects. His body is expected to be transported to key Shi'ite centers in Iran and Iraq — Qom, Najaf, and Karbala — before burial on Thursday in Mashhad, home to Iran's holiest pilgrim shrine.

Khamenei was only the second supreme leader since the 1979 Islamic Revolution that ended the monarchy. He expanded Iran's influence across the Middle East through support of proxy militant groups such as Hezbollah in Lebanon, Hamas in Gaza, and the Houthis in Yemen. However, "Iran's proxies were somehow eliminated, if not weakened, after October 7 [the Hamas attack on Israel] and Israeli retaliation."

The country has faced significant unrest, with thousands, including conservative middle-class citizens, protesting against a spiraling economy, political corruption, and hopelessness about Iran's future. These demonstrations were the largest since the Islamic Revolution nearly 50 years ago. According to the US-based human rights group HRANA, almost 6,500 people were killed by security forces, mostly on January 8 and 9.

Public opinion on Khamenei remains divided. Some remember him as "the most patriotic Iranian" and a figure of resistance martyred by enemies, while others recall his tenure for authoritarianism, women's rights violations, human rights abuses, and political suppression. Reports indicate that some people even came out onto their rooftops cheering upon his death.

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