Large crowds dressed in black flooded the streets of Tehran on Saturday, mourning Iran’s top military commanders, nuclear scientists, and civilians killed during this month’s brutal aerial war with Israel.
Among the dead were at least 16 scientists and 10 senior commanders, including Major General Mohammad Bagheri, Revolutionary Guards commander General Hossein Salami, and Guards Aerospace chief General Amir Ali Hajizadeh. Their coffins, adorned with photos and national flags, moved through Azadi Square as mourners waved flags, reached out to touch the caskets, and threw rose petals. State media called the funeral the "procession of the Martyrs of Power."
The war began on June 13, when Israel launched strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities and military leaders, marking Iran’s worst blow since the 1980s war with Iraq. Iran retaliated with missile barrages targeting Israeli military sites and cities. The United States joined on June 22, striking Iranian nuclear facilities.
Iranian officials said 60 people were buried on Saturday. Mass prayers were held, and ballistic missiles were displayed in the square.
President Masoud Pezeshkian attended alongside senior officials, including Ayatollah Khamenei’s son, Mojtaba, and Ali Shamkhani, who was wounded during the conflict. Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi praised Iranians' "heroic resistance" against Israel and the U.S., claiming they defended national dignity and emerged more resolute.
Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei did not appear publicly, though he has issued two pre-recorded video messages since the war began.
Bagheri was buried at Behesht Zahra cemetery on Saturday afternoon. Salami and Hajizadeh are set to be buried on Sunday.
The conflict's toll was heavy. Iran’s health ministry reported 610 killed and over 4,700 injured before a ceasefire took effect on Tuesday. Activist network HRANA reported higher figures, citing 974 dead, including 387 civilians.
In Israel, the health ministry said 28 people were killed and more than 3,200 injured.
Tensions remain high. U.S. President Donald Trump warned on Friday that he might consider future strikes on Iran. In response, Khamenei threatened U.S. military bases in the region.
Israel, widely believed to possess nuclear weapons, said its strikes aimed to stop Iran from developing such arms. Tehran denies pursuing nuclear weapons, a claim echoed by the U.N. nuclear watchdog.
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Start your day informed with AnewZ Morning Brief. Here are the top news stories for the 13rd of March, covering the latest developments you need to know.
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Iran should continue “blocking the Strait of Hormuz,” while the U.S. should “shut” its Middle East military bases, new Iranian Supreme Leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, said on Thursday in his first speech since being elected. He is still yet to appear in public, and a broadcaster read out his words.
Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian has set recognition of Tehran’s inalienable rights, payment of war compensation, and international guarantees against any future invasion as conditions for ending the U.S.–Israel war with the Islamic Republic.
The U.S. should shut down its military bases in the Middle East, Iran's new Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei said on Thursday (12 March). His words were read out by a broadcaster on state Iranian television.
More than 68,000 children in eastern Afghanistan have been displaced after clashes between Afghan and Pakistani forces intensified along the border, according to a new report by Save the Children.
Georgia has cancelled international tenders for the construction of major road sections that form part of a regional highway linking the country with the borders of Armenia and Azerbaijan.
Norwegian police apprehended three brothers suspected of carrying out Sunday's (8 March) bombing at the U.S. embassy in Oslo, in an attack investigators have branded an act of terrorism.
“Get ready for oil to be $200 a barrel," a spokesman for the Iranian Army warned the world on Wednesday (11 March), as attacks on ships in the Strait of Hormuz escalated. Meanwhile, 32 countries agreed to the largest ever release of oil reserves in an attempt to reduce prices.
Leaders of Iran, Israel, and the United States reiterated their determination to press on with the conflict on Friday (13 March), as the Middle East war approached two weeks, leaving thousands dead and millions affected, tensions in the region escalated further with a deadly attack in Iraq.
Iran should continue “blocking the Strait of Hormuz,” while the U.S. should “shut” its Middle East military bases, new Iranian Supreme Leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, said on Thursday in his first speech since being elected. He is still yet to appear in public, and a broadcaster read out his words.
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Fifteen Turkish-owned vessels remain stranded in the blockaded Strait of Hormuz, Türkiye’s Transport and Infrastructure Minister Abdulkadir Uraloğlu said on Wednesday.
New Iranian Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei has said Iran should continue ‘blocking the Strait of Hormuz’ in his first statement since his election, read out on Iranian State television on Thursday (12 March).
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