‘Millions’ Gather On Streets For Funeral Of Dead Iranian General

Millions gathered on the streets of Tehran, Iran for the funeral of Iranian general, Qasem Soleimani, who was killed in a US airstrike.

Mourners can be seen passing the major’s coffin over their heads in a footage while chants of ‘death to America’ could be heard.

Some of the people in the crowd are also seen burning US and Israeli flags during the procession, sending clouds of smoke into the air.

According to the country’s state television, there were ‘millions’ of people in attendance, although the figure is unconfirmed. The funeral also honoured Iraqi military commander Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis and other victims of the US airstrike at Baghdad International Airport last week.

Prayers were led by Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who at one stage was seen breaking down in tears. He stood next to Soleimani’s successor, Esmail Ghaani, along with Iranian President Hassan Rouhani and other top leaders in the Islamic Republic.

Ghaani has vowed to take revenge against the US, as Tehran abandoned the remaining limits of its 2015 nuclear deal with world powers.

Earlier today Soleimani’s daughter Zeinab told how the US faces a ‘dark day’ for killing her father and Al-Muhandis.

Speaking to the crowd, she said: ‘Crazy Trump, don’t think that everything is over with my father’s martyrdom.’ I

She then added: ‘The families of the American soldiers in western Asia … will spend their days waiting for the death of their children.’

Ismail Haniyeh, leader of Palestinian militant group Hamas, also attended the funeral and described Soleimani as ‘the martyr of Jerusalem’ in an address to mourners.

Terrifying insight into what people in the White House think of the Iran crisis He vowed that militant groups would walk Soleimani’s way ‘to confront the Zionist project and the American influence’.

Soleimani had ‘close ties’ with groups in Iraq as well as with Shi’a paramilitary organisation Kataib Hezbollah. He was hailed as a national hero in Iran and widely considered the second most powerful man in the country behind the supreme leader.

However he was thought to be planning an ‘imminent’ attack on US diplomats and military personnel. After the funeral, Soleimani’s remains will be taken to Qom, one of the centres of Shi’a Islam. Two huge sea lions hijack yacht then sink it.

A ceremony will then be held there, before another funeral takes place in Kerman, the general’s hometown.

Last night President Donald Trump warned that the US would ‘strike back’ if Iran sought revenge for Soleimani’s killing.

Taking to Twitter, he wrote that he could act in a ‘disproportionate manner’ if Iran targeted ‘any US person or target’. At the end of the tweet he added: ‘Such legal notice is not required, but is given nevertheless!’

 

Credit:mirror.co.uk

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