DUBAI
\nA powerful general who leads Iran\u2019s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard emerged from hiding as Tehran prepared Friday for the dayslong funeral for the late Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Photos published online by Iranian state media showed Gen. Ahmad Vahidi attending a meeting about the funeral of Khamenei, 86, then sitting alongside his casket as Iran\u2019s theocracy held a smaller service for him Thursday night near the supreme leader\u2019s former home in downtown Tehran.
\nVahidi has become a major player in formulating Iran\u2019s tough stance in negotiating a possible permanent end to the war with the United States, experts say. He is believed to be part of a small clique in direct contact with Iran\u2019s new Supreme Leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei, who remains in hiding after being reportedly wounded in the Feb. 28 Israeli strikes that killed his father, the elder Khamenei.
\nVahidi himself hasn\u2019t been seen publicly since Feb. 8, weeks before the Iran war began. Video published by Iranian state media showed the mourning ceremony for Khamenei near the husseiniyah at his compound in Tehran. An Israeli airstrike in the war\u2019s first moments killed Khamenei and some of his family members. State media said Khamenei\u2019s body sat within a coffin on a stage, with red tulips lined up in front of it. What appeared to be paper butterflies hung from the ceiling in front of it.
\nThe black-clad mourners, whom state media identified as coming from families of those who lost loved ones in the 12-day war in 2025 and the recent Iran war, threw scarves and other items for attendants to brush against the coffin, a common practice in Iran.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
DUBAI A powerful general who leads Iran\u2019s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard emerged from hiding as Tehran prepared Friday for the dayslong funeral for the late Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Photos published online by Iranian state media showed Gen. Ahmad Vahidi attending a meeting about the funeral of Khamenei, 86, then sitting alongside his casket as […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":554372,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-554347","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-world"],"yoast_head":"\n