Shafaq News- Najaf

The bodies of the late Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and members of his family arrived at Najaf International Airport on Tuesday in an official reception ceremony led by Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi.

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian is heading the Iranian delegation, accompanied by Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, FM Abbas Araghchi, IRGC Commander Email Qaani, and official leaders.

يا زائِرَ الحُسَينِ هنيئًا لَكَ السَّفَرُفالعُمرُ يَفنى وَبابُ الحُسَينِ مُنتَظَرُطوبى لِقَدمٍ سَعَتْ نَحوَ مَشهَدِهِفإنَّها خُطُواتٌ يَكتُبُها القَدَرُشکراً للعراق علی کرم الضیافة pic.twitter.com/MR12UPyGHR

— Esmaeil Baqaei (@IRIMFA_SPOX) July 7, 2026

Thousands of Iraqi security personnel have been deployed around the airport and surrounding areas to secure the ceremony and ensure the safe transfer of the body to Najaf City, where the official ceremony is held on Wednesday morning. It will then be transported to the holy city of Karbala later the same day as part of the funeral procession.

According to Shafaq News sources, the funeral procession will begin at 6:00 a.m. Baghdad time on Wednesday in Najaf, with a second procession to follow in Karbala at 4:00 p.m.

Ayatollah Sayyed Muhammad Taqi al-Hakim is to lead the funeral prayer in Najaf, while Sheikh Abdul Mahdi al-Karbalai, the representative of the top Shiite religious authority, Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, will lead the prayer at the shrine of Imam Hussein bin Ali once the body reaches Karbala.

In Najaf, the procession will set out from the Kufa bridge, at the start of Kufa Street, heading toward the Thawrat al-Ishrin bridge and passing through al-Sadrain Square, the sources said. The bodies will then be moved by military convoy to Karbala, where the procession will run from the Sayyid Jawda intersection along Muhafaza Street, past the court intersection, toward the shrines of Imam Hussein bin Ali and al-Abbas.

Najaf and Karbala were undergoing intensive security and service preparations, including the setup of hospitality sites and the provision of water, food, and first aid, along with arrangements to manage the movement of processions and arriving crowds.

Al-Zaidi ordered official working hours suspended across all state institutions on Wednesday to coincide with the funeral rites for the late Iranian leader.

Following the ceremonies in Iraq, the body will return to Iran on July 9 for burial in the northeastern city of Mashhad.