Iran : derrière l’absence du nouveau guide, la reconfiguration du pouvoir

Cette capture d'écran provient de cet article du Figaro. | Une photo de Mojtaba Khamenei dans la foule, à Téhéran, en Iran, le 6 juillet 2026. Mohammed Salem / REUTERS
LE FIGARO : DÉCRYPTAGE - Autour de Mojtaba Khamenei, invisible aux funérailles de son père, la nouvelle direction apparaît moins religieuse, plus audacieuse, mais tout aussi cruelle vis-à-vis de ses opposants.

Au terme d’une semaine de célébrations dans les principaux lieux du chiisme iranien et irakien et alors qu’un nouvel épisode de guerre a commencé avec les États-Unis, l’Iran a inhumé jeudi dans la ville sainte de Machhad l’ayatollah Ali Khamenei, en l’absence de son fils et successeur Mojtaba, comme guide suprême d’une République islamique que le conflit a contraint à la reconfiguration.

Celui qui a dirigé l’Iran pendant trente-huit ans a été enterré au mausolée de l’imam Reza, le plus important lieu de culte de l’Iran, au milieu d’une foule brandissant des portraits de l’ancien guide, assassiné par une frappe israélo-américaine le 28 février, à l’âge de 86 ans, au premier jour de la guerre imposée par ses ennemis. « Nous allons tuer Trump », pouvait-on lire sur une banderole déployée sur la façade d’un immeuble. » | Par Georges Malbrunot | jeudi 9 juillet 2026

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Ahmadinejad Back from the Dead at Khamenei’s Funeral

THE TELEGRAPH: Iran’s former president reported as killed at start of the war spotted among millions of mourners in Tehran

Screenshot from this Telegraph article. | Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, Iran’s former president, was among the mourners at the funeral procession for slain supreme leader Ali Khamenei
Iran’s former president has appeared at the funeral of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei despite having been reported killed at the start of the war.

Mahmoud Ahmadinejad was one of millions of mourners who poured into Tehran dressed in black on Monday to escort the slain supreme leader’s coffin through the capital.

The former hardline president, who governed from 2005 to 2013, was declared dead by several Iranian state-affiliated media outlets on the opening day of the war, when Israeli and US strikes killed Khamenei and much of the country’s leadership.

It was thought he had been killed when a missile struck near his home.

He was never seen or heard from in the months that followed, and no official confirmation or denial of his fate was issued, leaving his status among the many uncertainties of the war’s chaotic first days.

On Monday, however, he was seen in public for the first time since the war, moving among the mourners in a jacket with a mask pulled down to his throat. » | Akhtar Makoli | Monday, July 6, 2026

Democracy Now! Report from Tehran: Millions Attend Ali Khamenei's Funeral amid Widespread Sense of Victory in War

July 7, 2026 | Millions of people are estimated to be participating in the multiday state funeral of Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei in Iran this week. After ruling the Islamic Republic of Iran for over three dozen years, Khamenei was killed by a joint Israeli-U.S. airstrike on February 28. N

ow viewed as a martyr by both his religious base and the wider Iranian public, Khamenei has taken on a "new identity" as "the leader of the resistance movement, the leader in the fight against U.S. imperialism," says Tehran-based journalist Reza Sayah, who has been reporting on the funeral proceedings.

Sayah also discusses the absence of Khamenei's son and chosen successor Mojtaba Khamenei from the public eye, the Iranian government's position on the thousands of protesters killed by security forces in the early months of 2026 and more.


Democracy Now! can be supported here.

Crowds Gather in Tehran for Ayatollah’s Funeral Procession

THE NEW YORK TIMES: Tens of thousands of Iranians have viewed the casket of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who was exalted by some and despised by others. He was killed four months ago at the start of the U.S.-Israeli attacks.

Huge crowds were amassing in the Iranian capital, Tehran, for the third consecutive day on Monday to mourn Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the Iranian supreme leader, who ruled his country for decades with an iron fist before he was killed in the war with the United States and Israel.

The ayatollah’s body is expected to be carried through the city in a public procession. Later this week, it will be borne to several cities in Iran and neighboring Iraq that are significant to Shiite Muslims, before being buried in his hometown, Mashhad.

Grieving supporters of Iran’s Islamic Republic have wept and called for revenge as they viewed the casket of the killed leader since the funeral ceremonies began on Saturday. On Sunday, tens of thousands of mourners, including senior Iranian officials, packed Tehran for prayers for the slain supreme leader.

Though he was exalted by many, Ayatollah Khamenei was also despised by numerous other Iranians for presiding over an authoritarian state that brutally crushed dissent. Earlier this year, Iranian security forces suppressed mass antigovernment protests, killing thousands, according to Iranian officials and human rights groups.

For Iran’s current leaders, the mass funeral has served in part as a show of national unity around the deceased leader. But his son and successor, Mojtaba Khamenei, has been conspicuously absent from the ceremonies.

Mojtaba Khamenei has not been seen in public since succeeding his father, who was killed when Israeli forces bombarded Ayatollah Khamenei’s compound on the first day of the war in late February. And his absence from the funeral ceremonies has emerged as a point of scrutiny for Iran’s leadership as they seek to project stability and continuity. Iran Live Updates » | Aaron Boxerman and Abdi Latif Dahir | Monday, July 6, 2026

Why Iran's Unseen Leader Remains in the Shadows • FRANCE 24 English

July 5, 2026 | The images emerging from Tehran are striking. Tens of thousands of mourners dressed in black have gathered at the Imam Khomeini Grand Mosalla for the funeral and lying in state of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, following his assassination on the opening day of a war between Iran and the United States on February 28. Negar Mortazavi is an Iranian-American journalist, Senior Fellow at the Center for International Policy, and host of the Iran Podcast.

Calls for Killing of Trump at Funeral of Iran Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei

THE GUARDIAN: New supreme leader Mojtaba Khamenei still absent from public view as his three brothers stand beside father’s coffin

Beside the coffin of the assassinated former Iranian supreme leader Ali Khamenei at a packed prayer hall in Tehran on Sunday there were calls for the killing of Donald Trump.

Iran is staging a week of mass funeral processions ⁠for Khamenei, who was killed along with other members of his family on the first day of the US and Israeli war on 28 February. The funeral was delayed because of the war.

The funeral prayers for the former supreme leader and four other family members created a political spectacle at Tehran’s Imam Khomeini Grand Mosalla that melded grief with calls for revenge.

Many people had stayed in the mosque overnight or arrived well before dawn to be ready for the start of the prayer reading at 8am.

Holding Iranian flags and pictures of their martyred leader, and waving red flags symbolising vengeance the crowds were vastly larger and more militant than on Saturday, the first day of this elaborately conceived funeral designed to impress on the world that Iran has social resilience and determination to preserve its independence. » | Patrick Wintour in Tehran | Sunday, July 5, 2026

Mourners Chant ‘Revenge’ at Funeral Prayers for Iran’s Slain Supreme Leader

THE NEW YORK TIMES: On the second day of public mourning for Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who was killed in February, there was still no sign of his son and successor, Mojtaba Khamenei.

This screenshot is from this NYT article. | Mourners gathered to pray for Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Iran’s slain supreme leader, during the second day of funeral ceremonies at the Grand Mosalla mosque in Tehran on Sunday.Credit...Atta Kenare/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images
Tens of thousands of mourners, including senior Iranian officials, packed Tehran on Sunday for funeral prayers for the slain supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, as crowds chanted calls for revenge.

Among those in attendance for the second day of mourning for his death, according to footage broadcast on state media, were the brothers of the country’s new supreme leader, Mojtaba Khamenei. But the leader himself has not been seen in public since succeeding his father, who was killed at the onset of the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran in late February.

Ahmad Vahidi, the head of the powerful Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, also attended the prayers. He emerged from the sprawling Grand Mosalla mosque complex to mourners, many clad in black, who surged toward him.

“Revenge, revenge,” they chanted, a scene that was observed by New York Times reporters near him. Mr. Vahidi briefly greeted people before security personnel whisked him away. » | Abdi Latif Dahir | Reporting from Tehran | Sunday, July 5, 2026

Huge Crowds Mass in Tehran for Ayatollah’s State Funeral

THE NEW YORK TIMES: As days of public mourning ceremonies began, Iranians viewed the casket of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who was killed four months ago at the start of the U.S.-Israeli attacks.

Huge crowds of Iranians gathered on Saturday to view the casket of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei at an elaborate state funeral for the Iranian supreme leader, who dominated Iran for decades before being killed in the U.S.-Israeli war in late February.

Tens of thousands of people began arriving at dawn at the Grand Mosalla mosque in the capital, Tehran, for the start of six days of public ceremonies. Millions are expected to participate in the funeral as Ayatollah Khamenei’s body is transported to cities across the country.

Journalists for The New York Times at the event saw grieving supporters erupt in tears at the sight of the caskets of Ayatollah Khamenei and of several family members who were killed along with him, including his daughter and two grandchildren. Encased in glass and draped in Iranian flags, the caskets were placed atop a stage, with the ayatollah’s coffin positioned above the others.

It is a turbulent moment for Iran, which has spiraled from crisis to crisis. Huge antigovernment protests earlier this year were met with a brutal government crackdown, followed by months of war with the United States and Israel. Israeli airstrikes killed Ayatollah Khamenei, along with other top Iranian leaders, on the first day of the conflict.

While Ayatollah Khamenei’s supporters mourn him, many other Iranians view the lengthy and expensive funeral program with anger. Over 37 years of authoritarian rule, he harshly repressed dissent and allowed economic mismanagement and corruption to fester.

His son, Mojtaba Khamenei, has been named the country’s new supreme leader. It is unclear whether the son would attend the funeral; he has not been publicly seen since his appointment.

The funeral ceremonies, which overlapped with America’s 250th anniversary celebrations, are taking place more than four months after Ayatollah Khamenei was killed, in the wake of a U.S.-Iran cease-fire signed last month. Analysts say the Iranian authorities were probably wary of organizing a mourning event featuring senior leaders when the threat of U.S. or Israeli attacks loomed.

After a procession in Tehran on Monday, his body will be taken to the city of Qom and then on to Karbala and Najaf in Iraq; all three cities hold sacred significance for Shiite Muslims. On Thursday, his remains will be buried in his hometown, Mashhad.

The event in Tehran was intended as a show of strength for Iran’s Islamic Republic, which survived despite U.S. and Israeli hopes for regime change. Conservative supporters of Ayatollah Khamenei said they had slept in their cars overnight to avoid missing the ceremony.

But there were signs of criticism from religious hard-liners who see the cease-fire with the United States as a capitulation. Some mourners carried a banner that read, “What happened to revenge for the blood of our martyred Imam?” a reference to the ayatollah, according to video posted by Iran’s state broadcaster. » | Abdi Latif Dahir, Aaron Boxerman, Yeganeh Torbati and James C. McKinley Jr. | Saturday, July 4, 2026

Mass Mournings, 6 Days and 2 Countries: Iran Prepares to Bury Supreme Leader

THE NEW YORK TIMES: Long-delayed funeral ceremonies for Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, killed during U.S.-Israeli strikes at the war’s outset, are set to begin Friday. For the regime, it is a critical moment to demonstrate that it has endured.

There are few analogues in history for the size, scale and import of the funeral that Iran’s government is preparing to hold for its slain supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

Starting Friday in the capital, Tehran, and running for nearly a week, with ceremonies planned in at least five cities across Iran and Iraq, the funeral is expected to draw tens of millions of people, government officials have said.

Perhaps more striking than the funeral’s complexity and scope is its symbolism at this moment. It comes more than four months after Ayatollah Khamenei was killed in February at the outset of the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran, and six months after Iran was gripped by nationwide protests calling for an end to his government.

While millions of mourners are expected to turn out next week, many Iranians remain deeply dissatisfied with what Ayatollah Khamenei’s reign brought to their country over nearly four decades of authoritarian rule. He oversaw brutal repression, including the imprisonment, torture and killing of dissidents, and presided over widening corruption and the increasing control of much of Iran’s wealth by its security forces.

When it became clear that he had been killed, some in Iran celebrated openly, at great risk to themselves.

Ayatollah Khamenei was not only Iran’s head of state. He also presented himself as an authoritative Shiite Muslim cleric. He had devotees in Iraq and Lebanon, where his portrait is often seen at Shiite rallies, as well as in Pakistan and other countries in the region. » | Yeganeh Torbati | Thursday, July 2, 2026

Guerre au Moyen-Orient : l’Iran décrète trois jours fériés à Téhéran pour les funérailles de l’ayatollah Ali Khamenei

LE FIGARO : Un hommage national est prévu à Téhéran du 4 au 6 juillet, période durant laquelle « tout sera fermé » dans la ville, a déclaré la télévision d’État.

Les autorités iraniennes ont décrété mardi 23 juin trois jours fériés en juillet à Téhéran pour les funérailles de l'ayatollah Ali Khamenei, qui a dirigé l'Iran pendant près de 37 ans avant d'être tué par des frappes israélo-américaines le 28 février. Un hommage national est prévu à Téhéran du 4 au 6 juillet, période durant laquelle « tout sera fermé » dans la ville, a déclaré à la télévision d'État un responsable de l'organisation, Hassan Hassanzadeh. Une foule de près de « 20 millions de personnes » est attendue, selon le maire. » | Par Le Figaro avec AFP | mardi 23 juin 2026

Khamenei’s Killing Sparks Anger and Grief in South Asia’s Shiite Muslims

THE NEW YORK TIMES: Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who was killed during the U.S.-Israeli strikes on Iran, was deeply respected among the millions of Shiite Muslims in Pakistan and India.

Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was not just the supreme leader of Iran but also a widely respected religious figure among followers of Shiite Islam. In Pakistan and India, both home to millions of Shiites, there was an outpouring of anger and grief after he was killed during U.S.-Israeli strikes on Saturday.

Thousands took to the streets in India and Pakistan, many chanting slogans against the United States and Israel. Some demonstrations spilled into violence in Pakistan, where the authorities say at least 25 people were killed during unrest on Sunday.

Mr. Khamenei, who died at 86, was considered the leader of all Shiites, not just Iran, said Nawab Masood Abdullah, a Shiite community leader in the city of Lucknow in India. “His status is similar to what the Pope means to Christians,” he added.

For more than three decades as Iran’s supreme leader, Mr. Khamenei cultivated the image of a resistance leader who united people opposed to the United States and Israel. For Shiites outside Iran, experts said, Mr. Khamenei symbolized the power of the world’s biggest Shiite country. » | Showkat Nanda, Zia ur-Rehman, Suhasini Raj and Max Kim | Showkat Nanda reported from Srinagar, Zia ur-Rehman from Islamabad, Pakistan, and Suhasini Raj from New Delhi. | Friday, March 6, 2026

Ayatollah Ali Khamenei’s Son Emerges as Leading Choice to Be His Successor

THE NEW YORK TIMES: If Mojtaba Khamenei is chosen by Iran’s senior clerics, it may signal a victory for hard-liners, an analyst said.

The senior clerics responsible for selecting Iran’s next supreme leader met on Tuesday to deliberate, and the son of the slain former leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, emerged as the clear front-runner, according to three Iranian officials familiar with the deliberations.

The officials said that the clerics were considering announcing that the son, Mojtaba Khamenei, would be his father’s successor as early as Wednesday morning but that some had expressed reservations, fearing that it could expose him as a target for the United States and Israel. They spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive internal deliberations.

The clerics, known as the Assembly of Experts, held two virtual meetings one in the morning and one in the evening, according to the officials. Israel struck a building in Qum, one of Shia Islam’s main seats of power, where the assembly was scheduled to meet and elect the new supreme leader, but the building was empty, according to the Fars News agency, which is affiliated with the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps.

Vali Nasr, an expert of Iran and Shia Islam at Johns Hopkins University, said that Mr. Khamenei would be a surprising choice — and a potentially telling one. » | Farnaz Fassihi | Farnaz Fassihi has lived and worked in Iran, has covered the country for three decades and was a war correspondent in the Middle East for 15 years. | Tuesday, March 3, 2026

‘We Are Orphans’: Shiite Muslims Protest the Killing of Khamenei

Mar 1, 2026 | Shiite Muslims around the world protested the killing of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Iran’s supreme leader and a senior Shiite Muslim cleric. He died on Saturday during U.S. and Israeli attacks on his country. | Nader Ibrahim and Malachy Browne
Watch the NYT video here.

Ali Khamenei Never-before-seen Interview: "The West Does Not Know the Truth about Iran" | 60 Minutes

Mar 2, 2026 | In 1982, 60 Minutes travelled to Iran for a rare and exclusive access to one of the Shah's palaces, transformed into the headquarters of then President Ali Khamenei after the 1979 Islamic revolution.

Ali Khamenei became Supreme Leader in 1989 and led the country until March 2026 when he was killed during an attack by Israel and the United States that hit his compound.

The 1982 60 Minutes programme with George Negus remains the Ayatollah's only one-on-one TV interview with Western media. The interview, conducted with a state-appointed translator, includes portions that have never been broadcasted previously.

Guerre en Iran: les Iraniens célèbrent la mort de l’ayatollah Khamenei

LE FIGARO : Beaucoup redoutent cependant que l’élimination du guide donne lieu à une fuite en avant répressive du régime.

Le tyran est mort. Et avec lui, la peur est partie. « Je pleure, je pleure de joie ! », s’époumone cette résidente de Téhéran, contactée par messagerie cryptée. C’est la première fois qu’elle ose parler d’Ali Khamenei. Dans sa famille, partisane du régime, on a grandi avec une ligne rouge à ne jamais dépasser. « Le guide suprême était intouchable, une sorte de chef spirituel au-dessus de la mêlée. » Mais l’annonce, samedi soir, de son assassinat, a fait sauter un verrou. « Soudain, je me suis sentie libérée. J’ai grimpé les escaliers et j’ai rejoint les voisins sur le toit pour hurler : “Khamenei, c’est fini !” »

En cette nuit de samedi à dimanche, au terme d’une première journée de frappes israélo-américaines, les petites lumières des téléphones portables ont longtemps brillé dans l’obscurité : sur les balcons, les places publiques, les arrêts de bus, les trottoirs bondés d’hommes, de femmes, d’enfants. « Marg bar Khamenei ! (Mort à Khamenei, NDLR) », jubile l’un d’eux, en répétant le slogan d’usage dans les manifestations, sur une vidéo envoyée d’Ispahan. « Il est mort, mon chéri. Maintenant, tu peux crier “Azadi” (liberté) », lui répond sa mère en explosant de rire. » | Par Delphine Minoui | dimanche 1er mars 2026

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Après la mort d’Ali Khamenei, tué par les frappes en Iran, Vladimir Poutine dénonce une «violation cynique» de «la morale et du droit international»

LE FIGARO : Le président russe a adressé une lettre à son homologue iranien Massoud Pezeshkian, au lendemain de la mort du guide suprême iranien lors de l’attaque menée par les États-Unis et Israël à Téhéran.

Le président russe Vladimir Poutine a dénoncé ce dimanche la mort du guide suprême iranien, Ali Khamenei, tué lors de frappes américaines et israéliennes, qualifiant cet acte de «violation cynique» de « la morale et du droit international ». » | Par Le Figaro avec AFP | dimanche 1 mars 2026

Iran Vows to Avenge Leader’s Death as Strikes Continue

THE NEW YORK TIMES: U.S. and Israeli attacks entered a second day as Iran’s surviving leadership said the old guard would remain in control.

The Iranian government vowed on Sunday that it would retaliate for the attacks that killed Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Iran’s longtime supreme leader and an implacable enemy of Israel and the United States, as attacks on the country entered a second day.

The Iranian state news agency confirmed the ayatollah’s death on Sunday morning, and the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps — a powerful institution answering to the supreme leader — said that Iran would avenge him. Ali Larijani, a senior leader and Khamenei confidant, vowed that Iranian forces would fight even harder.

The ayatollah’s death prompted a range of reactions within Iran on Saturday. Large crowds poured into the streets of Tehran and other cities to celebrate the toppling of a leader who had ruled with an iron fist for nearly 37 years. Others mourned him.

The killing is a seismic political shift that raises the prospect of chaos and a power vacuum in an already turbulent region.

The United States and Israel said overnight that they were still attacking Iran. President Trump said on social media that U.S. strikes would continue “throughout the week or, as long as necessary to achieve our objective of PEACE THROUGHOUT THE MIDDLE EAST AND, INDEED, THE WORLD!” Live Updates » | Farnaz Fassihi, Ronen Bergman, Zolan Kanno-Youngs and Aaron Boxerman | Sunday, March 1, 2026

Is Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei Still Alive? | DW News

Feb 28, 2026 | Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that evidence has been piling up suggesting Iran's Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei has been killed in the Israeli strikes this morning.

What We Know So Far: Supreme Leader's Compound Hit and Iran's Retaliatory Strikes

BBC: The US and Israel have launched a large-scale attack on Iran.

President Donald Trump said the US had begun "major combat operations" and urged Iranians to overthrow their clerical rulers once they were complete.

Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz earlier announced that Israel had launched a "pre-emptive attack" against Iran to remove threats to the country.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said the strikes were "wholly unprovoked, illegal, and illegitimate".

His country responded by launching missiles towards Israel and four Gulf Arab countries which host US military bases: Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar and the UAE.

It came after weeks of threats from Trump that he would order military action if Iran did not agree a new deal over its nuclear programme.

Here's what we know. » | Hafsa Khalil and David Gritten | Saturday, February 28, 2026

Iran : le guide suprême menace de couler un porte-avions américain, le détroit d’Ormuz fermé partiellement pendant un exercice militaire

LE FIGARO : « Dans l’un de ses récents discours, le président américain a dit que depuis 47 ans l’Amérique n’a pas réussi à détruire la République islamique... Je vous le dis : vous n’y arriverez pas non plus », a déclaré Ali Khamenei.

Le guide suprême iranien, l'ayatollah Ali Khamenei, a prévenu mardi que le porte-avions américain déployé dans le Golfe pouvait être coulé, au moment où de nouvelles discussions indirectes ont démarré en Suisse entre Washington et Téhéran. En parallèle, les autorités iraniennes ont fait savoir le même jour par agence de presse la tenue d’un exercice militaire restreignant l’accès à certaines parties du détroit d’Ormuz.

« Nous entendons sans cesse dire » que les États-Unis « ont envoyé un navire de guerre vers l’Iran », a déclaré l’ayatollah dans un discours. « Un navire de guerre est certes une arme dangereuse, mais l’arme capable de le couler l’est encore plus », a-t-il insisté. » | Par Le Figaro avec Reuters et AFP | mardi 17 février 2026