357 Plays
Mourners packed downtown boulevards and squares in Tehran, where the bodies of Soleimani and five others killed alongside him awaited burial. Thousands were seated on the ground listening to speeches from Soleimani’s daughter Zainab and Ismail Haniyeh, leader of the Palestinian Hamas group.
Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei performed prayers beside the caskets that were held at Tehran University, often a forum for Friday prayers. Khamenei was surrounded by officials, including President Hassan Rouhani and Soleimani’s successor, Esmail Ghaani.
The caskets were then raised and carried through the crowds. Soleimani is due to be buried Tuesday in his southeastern hometown of Kerman.
U.S. President Donald Trump tweeted on Saturday that he had included Iranian cultural sites in his list of 52 targets for attack should Tehran retaliate against the U.S.’s assassination of Iran’s top military commander, Qassem Soleimani.
The prospect of an assault on sites like the ancient ruins of Persepolis or the immaculately tiled porticos of Esfahan’s 500-year old Naqshe Jahan Square triggered an immediate backlash across Iran, transcending the country’s deep political divisions.
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