Iran says supporters of US, Israel not invited to Khamenei's funeral

Iran excluded countries that backed the United States and Israel during the recent military campaign against the Islamic Republic from the funeral of former Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei has said.

According to Iran's state broadcaster IRIB, Baghaei said Tehran deliberately chose not to invite states that had supported what it described as the US and Israeli military aggression against Iran.

"We did not invite the countries that adopted an inappropriate position regarding the US and Israeli military aggression against the Iranian people, and that supported these hostile and criminal actions," Baghaei said.

Funeral ceremonies for Khamenei are scheduled to begin on July 4 in Tehran and conclude on July 9 with his burial in his hometown of Mashhad. Additional mourning events will be held in Qom and in Iraq during the intervening days.