In Iran, the national funeral of President Ebrahim Raïssi has begun

Tens of thousands of Iranians gathered in Tabriz on Tuesday, May 21, to attend the start of the national funeral of President Ebrahim Raïssi, killed in a helicopter accident. Iran has declared a five-day mourning period.

The event was broadcast live on all official Iranian media which broadcast images of a crowd clinging to the truck which transported the remains of Ebrahim Raïssi and the seven other passengers who died in the crash of the presidential helicopter .

Waving flags, people, sometimes in tears, threw white flowers as the convoy passed and tried to touch the coffins. Speaking at the start of the ceremony, Interior Minister Ahmad Vahidi paid tribute to the victims whom he described as “martyrs”. “The Iranian people have shown that he will make of every calamity a staircase to raise the nation towards new glories”he said.

After Tabriz, Ebrahim Raïssi’s remains will be transferred to Tehran, where Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei is due to lead prayers during a farewell ceremony on Tuesday evening. The president will be buried Thursday May 23 in his hometown of Mashad.