US pressures countries not to attend Khamenei’s funeral At least 13 countries withdraw or reduce participation: report
The United States has reportedly launched a diplomatic campaign to prevent countries from attending the days-long funeral of former Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in Tehran, Iranian media reported. Subsequently, at least 13 countries withdrew or scaled back their participation.Iran’s Tasnim news agency cited a senior source as saying that Washington launched a diplomatic campaign in the days leading up to the funeral to prevent foreign involvement. The event started at the Imam Khomeini Grand Musala in central Tehran and was attended by delegations from several countries.The funeral begins on Saturday and he will be buried in his hometown of Mashhad on July 9.According to reports, US Secretary of State Rubio issued confidential instructions to the US embassy and diplomatic missions in China on June 26, instructing diplomats to use “all available means” to prevent the host country from attending the funeral. Participation would be considered an “unfriendly act” and could affect bilateral relations with Washington, the report said.The report cited two unnamed Arab diplomats as saying that U.S. ambassadors to several African countries warned that involvement could lead to cuts in U.S. development aid. It also claims Rubio personally discussed the matter with his counterparts in at least five Arab countries.Citing its own assessment, the report said that at least 13 countries – including three Eastern European countries, five African countries, two Persian Gulf Arab countries and two major East Asian countries – withdrew from the ceremony or downgraded their representation due to U.S. pressure.The report further claims that some countries cited diplomatic reasons for their absence or conveyed explanations through intermediaries and their missions in Geneva and New York, while others sought to send lower-level delegations that were not accepted by the Iranian authorities.Meanwhile, Tehran is holding public funeral prayers for Ali Khamenei and four of his family members on Sunday, a day after the farewell ceremony.On February 28, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was assassinated in a US-Israeli attack, triggering a wider conflict in West Asia.Last month, the United States and Iran agreed to a 14-point memorandum of understanding (MoU) aimed at ending hostilities and opening a 60-day window for technical negotiations, including discussions on the Strait of Hormuz and Tehran’s nuclear program.After Khamenei’s death, his son Mojtaba Khamenei was appointed as Iran’s new supreme leader.Mojtaba Khamenei is expected to miss his father’s six-day funeral due to security concerns amid “continued assassination threats from Israel”.(With ANI input)
