Millions of mourners gathered in Tehran on Sunday for the second day of public funeral ceremonies for Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Iran's late Supreme Leader. U.S. President Donald Trump said negotiations with Tehran would recommence after the weeklong proceedings conclude.
The official mourning is slated to continue across several cities in Iran and in parts of Iraq ahead of Khamenei's burial in his hometown of Mashhad later this week. Processions are scheduled in Tehran on Monday, followed by ceremonies in the holy city of Qom and then in Najaf and Karbala in neighboring Iraq, underscoring the late leader's reach across the Shia Muslim world.
President Trump said neither side was expected to take military action during the funerals and that talks with Iran would resume once the ceremonies end. He also indicated that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu could visit the White House after the NATO summit, a comment he framed as evidence that Washington remains engaged in diplomatic channels following last month's ceasefire.
Iran pushed back on the U.S. president's remarks. The Iranian embassy in Armenia issued a statement saying Khamenei's death did not weaken the principles he stood for and accused Washington of misreading Iran's history and national identity.
Separately, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi met with delegations from Hamas and Hezbollah in Tehran. Both groups conveyed condolences over Khamenei's death and praised Iran's support during the recent conflict with Israel and the United States. Araqchi reiterated Tehran's backing for the Palestinian cause and said Iran remained committed to efforts aimed at ending hostilities in Lebanon under the current ceasefire framework.
Attention also remained fixed on the Strait of Hormuz. Shipping data indicated some commercial vessels were still altering their routes even as maritime traffic showed signs of gradual recovery since the conflict. The strait is one of the world's most important energy corridors, and traders continued to monitor the waterway closely for any disruption that could affect global oil supplies.
For now, the official stance from the United States is that diplomatic engagement will resume once the funerary period concludes, while Iranian authorities have emphasized continuity of principle and diplomatic activity with regional interlocutors. Observers and market participants are watching both the diplomatic timeline and shipping patterns through the Strait of Hormuz for developments that could influence energy markets.