Iran held a funeral for its former supreme leader, Ali Khamenei, on Friday, more than four months after he was killed in an airstrike. His coffin, draped in a flag, was carried into the shrine of Imam Reza in his home city of Mashhad. State broadcaster IRIB confirmed that the remains were interred in the shrine’s memorial hall, though his son and successor, Mojtaba Khamenei, was not seen in public during the proceedings.
The burial occurred against a backdrop of intensifying conflict, with two days of direct military exchanges between Washington and Tehran fueling international concerns about a potential return to all-out war. Iranian officials reported that recent US strikes resulted in 17 deaths, and state media noted that a rail link between Tehran and Mashhad was also targeted.
Simultaneously, reports have emerged regarding a new, specific intelligence warning shared by Israel with the United States concerning a potential Iranian plot to assassinate former President Donald Trump. US media outlets, including CNN and The Wall Street Journal, cited unnamed sources stating that the intelligence described a fresh and concrete threat. This follows a long-standing vow from Tehran to retaliate against Trump for his role in the 2020 assassination of Iranian General Qassem Soleimani.
When AFP contacted the White House about the reports, an unidentified official pointed to Trump’s remarks from Wednesday. While traveling home from a NATO summit, Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One that he was aware of being on various lists, stating, “They want to take out the US leader – me.” The reports of the alleged assassination plot surfaced as Trump faced scrutiny for his use of an older aircraft to depart Turkey following the NATO summit, occurring as the cycle of US-Iranian attacks continues to escalate.
Issued on: 10/07/2026 – 01:59Modified: 10/07/2026 – 04:36
