Pakistan Delegation At Khamenei Funeral Draws Effusive Praise From Iran

HYDERABAD, July 6 (NNN) -- Pakistan's high-ranking delegation at the funeral of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has won Iran's effusive praise, with the Iranian ambassador to Islamabad praying for "enduring friendship and brotherhood" between the two countries.

Dignitaries and officials from about 100 countries, including Malaysia, Bangladesh, Saudi Arabia, Turkiye, Qatar, Oman, Egypt, Russia, Iraq, China and India, were in Tehran on Friday to pay their respects to Khamenei, who lost his life, along with several family members, in the United States (US)-Israeli attack on his compound in the Iranian capital on February 28.

“I am profoundly honoured to announce that Pakistan participated in this solemn ceremony at the highest possible level,” Ambassador Reza Amiri Moghadam said in a post on his social media platform X page.

He said the Pakistani delegation was also the largest from any country at the ceremony, where the flag-draped coffins of Khamenei and his family members were placed on a stage.

Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif led the delegation, which included Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar, Chief of Army Staff Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir, Pakistan People's Party (PPP) chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, National Assembly Speaker Sardar Ayaz Sadiq, Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi and Information Minister Attaullah Tarar.

“The presence of such a distinguished, high-ranking and numerous delegation stands as a testament to the enduring friendship, mutual respect, and fraternal bonds between our two brotherly nations,” Moghadam said.

“This meaningful and historical gesture reflects the depth of the historic ties and shared values that have united Iran and Pakistan through the trials and triumphs of history,” he added.

Shehbaz paid homage to Khamenei, saying that his "wisdom, leadership and profound influence on Iran and the wider region will be remembered for generations."

Khamenei was Iran's Supreme Leader from 1989 until his assassination at the age of 86.

Iran began public funeral ceremonies on Saturday, with his burial being scheduled for July 9 in Mashhad, the city of Khamenei's birth.

--NNN