Iran's top officials, millions of mourners, attend Ayatollah Ali Khamenei's funeral

An Israeli airstrike killed at least two Palestinians in Gaza City on Sunday, health officials said.

Medics said the two people were killed when an airstrike hit a group of people at the Omar Al-Mokhtar road in the heart of the city, north of the enclave. Several others were wounded, they added.

The Israeli military did not immediately comment on the incident.

Israel has repeatedly carried out deadly strikes on Gaza since a US-mediated ceasefire with Hamas was reached in October last year. Over 1,066 Palestinians have been killed and thousands more injured as a result.

US President Donald Trump will meet with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy and Syrian ⁠President Ahmed al-Sharaa on the sidelines of the NATO summit in Turkey this week, the White House said on Sunday.

Lebanon’s Health Ministry says Israeli attacks in the country since 2 March have killed at least 4,304 people and wounded 12,203 others.

Meanwhile, Lebanon’s National News Agency reported fresh Israeli strikes in southern Lebanon, including in Al-Tayri in the Bint Jbeil district, Qantara, the Al-Hariq neighbourhood between Kfar Tebnit and Nabatieh al-Fawqa, and Al-Mansouri.

The agency also reported Israeli drones flying over the Tyre area.

What we've reported so far:

• Iran has continued large-scale funeral ceremonies for the late Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, with millions of mourners and senior political, military and religious figures gathering in Tehran’s Imam Khomeini Grand Mosalla.
• Day two of the proceedings saw the public appearance of Khamenei’s sons Masoud, Meysam and Mostafa, while his widely speculated successor Mojtaba Khamenei remained absent from view. Reports suggest he may be in hiding following injuries sustained in the airstrike that killed his father and other family members in February.
• Top officials including Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, IRGC commanders and Quds Force chief Esmail Qaani attended the ceremonies. The presence of senior military figures, including Brigadier-General Ahmad Vahidi, highlighted the state’s high-level mobilisation during the mourning period.
• Alongside the funeral events, Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi held separate meetings in Tehran with delegations from Hamas and Hezbollah, reaffirming political and diplomatic coordination across the region. Talks included discussions on Gaza, Lebanon and wider resistance alliances.
• Elsewhere, Hamas rejected Israeli allegations that it is rebuilding its military capacity in Gaza, accusing Israel of using such claims to justify continued attacks and ceasefire violations. The group reiterated its commitment to ongoing negotiations and administrative arrangements for post-war governance in Gaza.
• On the ground across the wider region, violence and instability continued, including settler attacks in the occupied West Bank and Israeli air strikes in Gaza.
• Meanwhile, maritime and aviation routes disrupted by earlier conflict have begun to gradually resume, with shipping activity in the Gulf and regional airports reopening in phases.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi has said Tehran is ready to use all its diplomatic capabilities to help lift the blockade on Yemen and support the implementation of a Yemeni peace roadmap.

He made the remarks during a meeting in Tehran with Yemeni Deputy Prime Minister Major General Jalal al-Ruwaishan, who is visiting Iran to attend memorial services for the leader of the Islamic Revolution.

During the meeting, al-Ruwaishan expressed condolences to Iran’s leadership, government and people, and congratulated Iranians on what he described as a “great and historic victory” over the United States and Israel, as well as what he characterised as a diplomatic success.

Araghchi, in turn, praised Yemen’s government and people for condemning what he described as US and Israeli military aggression against Iran, and for expressing solidarity with the Iranian people.

Bandar Abbas International Airport in southern Iran has resumed commercial operations after a four-month suspension.

The first passenger flight, arriving from Mashhad, landed on Saturday afternoon, according to the Fars news agency.

The airport, located in Hormozgan province on the Strait of Hormuz, around 1,000km (621 miles) south of Tehran, had been closed for reconstruction and repairs following damage sustained during the US-Israeli bombardment.

Iranian authorities expect flights to Tehran, Shiraz and Yazd to resume gradually over the coming days.

The life of a prominent Palestinian doctor held in Israeli detention without charge is in "imminent danger" following months of abuse and solitary confinement, an Israeli rights group warned on Saturday.

Hussam Abu Safiya, the head of Kamal Adwan Hospital in northern Gaza, has been held without charge since December 2024 when he was abducted by Israeli forces.

Physicians for Human Rights Israel (PHRI) said his lawyer, Nasser Odeh, found him severely injured during a visit to Nitzan Prison on 2 July.

During the visit, Odeh said the 53-year-old paediatrician experienced difficulty breathing, showed signs of severe psychological distress and was on the verge of losing consciousness. He reported that fresh injuries to his client's face were so severe that he struggled to recognise him.

Odeh said he had visited him several times since his detention, but during the latest visit "he was not the same person I had previously met".

"His physical and psychological state, the severe injuries visible on his body, and his personal testimony leave no room for doubt: his life is in immediate danger," he warned.

Abu Safiya has been held for more than 550 days under the Unlawful Combatants Law, which allows Israeli authorities to indefinitely detain Palestinians without charge or trial.

Israel's Supreme Court last month rejected an appeal for his release, upholding his detention until at least October.

Following the Supreme Court hearing, PHRI said Abu Safiya reported being beaten with a hammer and batons by Israeli prison guards at Ganot Prison, where he had been held in solitary confinement.

He said he has been subjected to daily beatings since his transfer to the Rakefet interrogation facility on 24 June and was denied medical attention. Rakefet is an underground facility inside Nitzan Prison where other Palestinian detainees have reported suffering violence and abuse.

Crowds of thousands filled the Grand Mosalla religious complex in Tehran for the second day in a row to attend the funeral ceremonies of Khamenei and four family members killed on February 28 in Israeli airstrikes based on US intelligence.

Here are the latest developments on what occurred during Sunday's service:

• Three of late Iranian supreme leader Ali Khamenei's sons made a rare public appearance at his funeral on Sunday
• There was still no sign of his successor and other son, Mojtaba Khamenei
• Iran's speaker of parliament and chief negotiator with the United States, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, one of the most prominent faces of the post-Ali Khamenei era, hailed on X how the "proud and invincible nation of Islamic Iran unanimously" paid tribute to its "martyr"

• The new commander of the powerful Revolutionary Guards, Ahmad Vahidi, whose predecessor was killed in the February 28 strikes, appeared at the funerals for a second time on Sunday, this time in the open air, after he went unseen throughout the war.

• Esmail Qaani, the shadowy head of the Guards' Quds Force -- responsible for its foreign operations -- also made a rare appearance, telling Iranian TV that Khamenei's "blessed end" was fitting after a lifetime of "striving"

•  None of President Masoud Pezeshkian's surviving predecessors -- Mohammad Khatami, Mahmood Ahmadinejad and Hassan Rouhani who all had tensions in their relationship with Khamenei -- have so far been seen at the ceremonies

• Iran's army commander Amir Hatami meanwhile told state TV he had vowed to Mojtaba Khamenei that he "will not let go of the collar of those who killed" the new leader's father

Hamas has rejected Israeli claims that it is rebuilding its military capabilities in Gaza, accusing Israel of using the allegations to justify continued attacks and daily killings in the enclave.

In a statement on Sunday, Hamas spokesperson Hazem Qassem said the movement and other Palestinian factions remain fully committed to the ceasefire agreement and called on mediators and guarantor countries to pressure Israel to end what he described as repeated violations of the deal.

Qassem said Israeli claims that Hamas is accelerating its military build-up in terms of personnel and weapons amount to "clear incitement" against the movement and are intended to justify "its continuous aggression on the Gaza Strip, daily killings and violation of the ceasefire agreement".

He also urged media outlets to exercise caution when reporting claims from Israeli sources, particularly those concerning the people of Gaza.

Israeli media, including Yedioth Ahronoth, recently cited unnamed sources claiming Hamas was rearming, rebuilding tunnel infrastructure, manufacturing weapons and rockets, and preparing for another round of fighting.

In a separate statement, Qassem said Hamas remained committed to transferring responsibility for administering the Gaza Strip to the National Committee for the Administration of Gaza, calling for its swift deployment so it could begin serving Palestinians.

He added that Hamas had approached the latest round of negotiations "positively and responsibly" and was seeking agreement on all outstanding issues to ensure an end to what he described as the "war of annihilation" against Palestinians, as well as the start of meaningful humanitarian relief and reconstruction across Gaza.

Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Baqer Ghalibaf has reaffirmed Tehran's support for the "resistance front" during a meeting with Hamas Shura Council chief Mohammad Darwish and his delegation in Tehran.

According to Iran's Khaneh-e-Mellat news agency, Ghalibaf said Iran's support "will be by rockets if necessary, or by pressure through negotiations if necessary".

Referring to the Islamabad talks, he stressed the importance of avoiding "negotiations for the sake of negotiations".

He said diplomacy should help consolidate military gains and preserve the achievements of Iran's armed forces, adding that negotiations must be backed by full defensive preparedness.

Ghalibaf also discussed the memorandum of understanding signed with the United States last month, saying its implementation remained difficult but achievable.

He added that revenge for the late Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei "will be by liberating Jerusalem", and declared: "We will not make peace with the United States and we will not recognise Israel."

Darwish, who is in Tehran to attend Khamenei's funeral, described the Islamabad understandings as "a victory for Iran and a defeat for the United States".

He also said that the 7 October 2023 attack marked Israel's greatest defeat since its establishment, arguing that the United States and Israel had failed to defeat the group or overthrow the Islamic Republic during the recent war.

Darwish also welcomed the inclusion of a clause relating to Iran's allies in the "Axis of Resistance" in the memorandum of understanding.

In an interview with Al-Araby Al-Jadeed, award-winning Iranian journalist, academic and political analyst Ahmad Zeidabadi said Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and US President Donald Trump had misjudged the reaction of the Iranian public by ordering the assassination of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and several members of his family.

Zeidabadi said the two leaders had "exposed an applied ignorance of the psychology of the Iranian masses".

"If they had the slightest understanding of the nature of the collective unconscious among Iranians, they would have realised that a liquidation of such a bloody scale turns in the public consciousness into a high honour, giving the dead an exceptional and sacred status, which goes beyond the context of ordinary life," he added.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said that there will be no reconstruction in Gaza until Hamas surrenders its weapons and is fully disarmed.

Addressing Lebanon, Netanyahu said: “We are working according to our own considerations,” despite an interim agreement between Iran and the United States stating that Israel must cease attacks on Lebanon and end its occupation.

On Saturday, Netanyahu marked the 250th anniversary of US Independence Day in a video message, describing the United States as “the greatest force for liberty the modern world has known”.

“Freedom is never cheap. It must be continually purchased. It must be continually defended… When America and Israel stand together, freedom stands stronger,” he said.

He added: “The tyrants we face chant, ‘Death to America, death to Israel’. They think freedom is weak. They think democracies are weak. They’re wrong about our two democracies.”

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has denied reports that US President Donald Trump asked Israel not to target what he described as “terror tunnels” in Lebanon.

Speaking at a cabinet meeting, Netanyahu said: “I heard it was said in the media that President Trump asked not to act against terror tunnels in Lebanon. This is a legend, fake news,” according to Ynet News.

“He didn’t say anything to me about it, and I didn’t ask him. We operate according to our considerations.”

Maritime trade between Iran and Qatar has resumed after a roughly five-month suspension, Iran’s commercial attaché in Doha told state media on Sunday.

An interim deal between Tehran and Washington signed last month announced the end of hostilities after a four-month conflict and mandated a return to pre-war maritime traffic in the Gulf, although transit in and out of the Gulf remains contested.

Abbas Abdolkhani said shipping between Iran’s Dayyer port and Qatar’s Al Ruwais port had resumed following coordination between the Iranian embassy in Doha and Qatari authorities.

The two geographically opposite ports mainly cater to regional trade. Dayyer port was hit several times during the war.

In late June, an official from the Trade Promotion Organisation of Iran told state media that Iranian goods were finally being cleared at the United Arab Emirates' Jebel Ali Port, the largest in the region, pointing to a gradual return of trade between the Gulf's two sides.

Syria on Sunday said it was expecting a visit by French President Emmanuel Macron, the first by a Western European head of state since the 2024 toppling of longtime ruler Bashar al-Assad.

State news agency SANA, citing the Syrian presidency's media office, said "Macron is expected to visit Syria to discuss ways of strengthening bilateral relations and issues of common interest", without specifying a date for the visit.

Israeli settlers burned down a restaurant in the village of Al-Laban al-Sharqiyah, south of Nablus in the northern West Bank, on Sunday, as part of a series of sporadic attacks across the territory, alongside arrests reported in the area.

The secretary of the Fatah movement in Al-Laban al-Sharqiyah, Raja Owais, told Al-Araby Al-Jadeed that settlers set fire at dawn to a restaurant located between Al-Laban al-Sharqiyah and Amouriya, south of Nablus.

The property belongs to his brother, Ya'qub Owais, head of the village council, and is situated near Al-Zaytouna University.

He said the attackers smashed the restaurant’s doors, stole money from inside, and then set it alight, destroying it completely, under the protection of Israeli forces.

Owais said the restaurant had been serving university students, and estimated losses at around one million shekels (approximately $350,000).

Revolutionary Guard chief Brigadier-General Ahmad Vahidi was among high-profile Iranians attending the funeral prayers for the late Supreme Leader.

Vahidi’s presence was notable, with footage published by Fars News Agency and other Iranian media showing him in the front row of the ceremony among mourners. 

Mohammad Pakpour, the most recent IRGC chief, was killed during the opening phase of the US-Israeli war on 28 February.

Pakpour had been appointed after Israel killed his predecessor, Hossein Salami, during the 12-day war in June 2025.

The Israeli military has alleged it killed two Hamas fighters in separate air strikes in the Gaza Strip last week.

The Palestinians were identified as Muhammad Najib Ashur and Taamir Saeed Abu Nahal, according to the Israeli military.

It alleged that Ashur was a commander in Hamas’s Nukhba unit, while Abu Nahal led a Hamas cell.

The military said both men were involved in planning attacks against Israeli soldiers.

A cargo ship came under attack Sunday off the coast of Yemen in the Red Sea, the British military said Sunday.

The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations center reported the attack off Yemen, saying the ship reported being “under attack by unknown armed assailants.”

The UKMTO said authorities were investigating.

No group immediately claimed the attack. Yemen’s Houthi rebels have threatened to begin attacking ships again, though they have not been carrying out attacks.

Meanwhile, Somali pirates have been active further away in the Gulf of Aden recently as well.

Funeral prayers were also held today for the four members of Ali Khamenei's family who were killed in the US-Israeli strike on 28 February, including his 14-month-old granddaughter, Zahra Mohammadi Golpayegani.

Footage shared by the Tasnim news agency showed the infant's small coffin placed beside her grandfather's during the funeral prayers. The agency said her father, Mohammad Javad Mohammadi Golpayegani, was also among those attending the ceremony.

Zahra's mother, Boshra Khamenei, was also killed in the same strike.

Qatar said on Sunday that maritime activities would resume with immediate effect, according to a Transport Ministry statement posted on X.

This reverses a June 29 advisory that had urged the temporary suspension of sailing and fishing boats until further notice, though commercial shipping was exempted.

The ministry on Sunday urged all maritime vessel operators and users to "abide by the maritime regulations and instructions in effect, to ensure the highest levels of safety and security for all trips".

Qatar did not provide a reason behind the June 29 measure, but it came a day after it said one of its nationals had been killed after sustaining injuries from shrapnel due to "military operations in the region", following the disappearance of his vessel. 

Tehran's metro network recorded more than 7 million passenger journeys between 5:30pm (14:00 GMT) on Saturday and 7am (03:30 GMT) on Sunday, according to official figures cited by the semi-official Tasnim News Agency.

The surge in ridership coincides with the funeral ceremony for the former supreme leader and members of his family at the Imam Khomeini Musalla in Tehran, which is scheduled to continue until 8pm (16:30 GMT).

According to Tasnim, organisers have urged mourners to use the metro network to travel to the funeral site.

A Hamas delegation, led by Mohammad Darwish, head of the group's Shura Council, offered condolences over Khamenei's death and briefed Araghchi on the situation in Gaza and the occupied West Bank, according to Iran's Foreign Ministry.

Darwish described the international response to the humanitarian crisis in Gaza as "catastrophic" and called for Israel to be held accountable. He also praised Iran's longstanding support for the Palestinian cause and congratulated Tehran on what he described as its military and diplomatic achievements during the US-Israeli war.

Araghchi thanked the delegation and reaffirmed Iran's support for Palestinian statehood, the ministry said.

The foreign minister also met a Hezbollah delegation led by senior political official and former Lebanese MP Muhammad Fneish, who conveyed condolences from Hezbollah Secretary-General Naim Qassem, according to the IRNA news agency.

Fneish thanked Iran for its support for Lebanon and praised what he described as Tehran's military and diplomatic performance during the recent conflict with the United States and Israel.

Araghchi, in turn, praised Hezbollah's resistance and paid tribute to the group's slain former leader, Hassan Nasrallah. He said Iran would continue efforts to secure an end to the war in Lebanon in line with the memorandum of understanding agreed with the United States, IRNA reported.

Three sons of slain Iranian leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei prayed beside his coffin and those of four other family members on Sunday, but Mojtaba, the son who has succeeded him as Iran's supreme leader, did not make an appearance.

State TV showed Mostafa, Meysam and Masoud Khamenei praying behind the coffins laid out in the vast courtyard of Tehran's Imam Khomeini Grand Mosalla, a sprawling religious complex. In a show of public devotion to the theocratic state and revolutionary zeal, the Islamic Republic is staging a week of mass funeral processions for Khamenei, including taking his remains to Shi'ite religious sites in neighbouring Iraq.

After a day lying in state indoors for senior Iranian leaders and foreign officials to visit, Khamenei's coffin was displayed outdoors on Saturday under glass, along with those of his daughter, son-in-law, daughter-in-law and 14-month-old granddaughter.

There has still been no public sighting or image released of Mojtaba, said to have been injured in the attack that killed his father and the other family members on February 28, when Israel and the U.S. bombed Iranian targets at the start of the war.

Mojtaba Khamenei's face was reportedly disfigured and he suffered a significant injury to one or both legs.

Welcome to The New Arab's live coverage.

Iran is continuing its days-long funeral ceremonies for Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and four members of his family, who were killed in a US-Israeli air strike on his compound on 28 February.

Millions of mourners have gathered for the funeral prayers, with ceremonies set to continue across Iran and in key Shia holy cities in Iraq.

The events have become a focal point in the aftermath of the conflict, unfolding alongside renewed diplomatic efforts to prevent further escalation between Iran, the United States, and Israel.

Follow our live updates and the latest developments from across the region.