Iran-backed Hezbollah and Hamas attend Khamenei funeral ceremonies

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TEHRAN: Representatives of Tehran-backed militant groups attended the funeral ceremonies of slain Iranian supreme leader Ali Khamenei on Saturday (Jul 4), with envoys from Hezbollah and Hamas meeting with Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, state media reported.

Tehran has for years provided support to Palestinian Hamas, Lebanon's Hezbollah and Yemen's Houthi rebels - all designated terrorist groups by the United States and other Western nations, making Iran the target of international sanctions.

Iran has dubbed its anti-Israel network of allies, which also includes armed groups in Iraq, the "axis of resistance".

The Hezbollah delegation to Tehran was headed by senior official and former minister Mohammed Fneish, and included officials and families of killed and wounded members, the group told Lebanese media. 

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Hamas, meanwhile, said in a statement that its delegation was led by the head of its political bureau, Mohammed Darwish, and included other bureau members such as Bassem Naim.

In July 2024, Ismail Haniyeh, then the political leader of Hamas, was killed in his accommodation in Tehran in an Israeli operation after he attended the inauguration ceremony for Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian.

Also attending Saturday's ceremonies in Tehran were Ziyad al-Nakhalah, the leader of the Palestinian militant group and Hamas ally Islamic Jihad, and senior Houthi member Dhaif Allah al-Shami, state TV reported.

Most foreign officials and dignitaries paid their respects on Friday to Khamenei, who ruled Iran from 1989 and was killed aged 86 along with several members of his family and top officials in a US-Israeli strike on Feb 28, triggering the war in the Middle East.

On Saturday, crowds of people gathered at the Grand Mosalla religious complex in the Iranian capital to bid farewell to the late supreme leader who had the final say in major state policies during his tenure.

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