Tehran [Iran], March 4 : A senior Iranian official said on Wednesday that Tehran would hold a public ceremony for citizens to pay their respects following the death of the country's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, France 24 reported, citing state media.
Hojjatoleslam Mahmoudi, head of Iran's Islamic Propagation Council, said the farewell ceremony would continue for three days, and the funeral procession would be announced later.
The ceremony was originally scheduled to take place at Tehran's Imam Khomeini Prayer Hall starting at 10 pm (1830 GMT) on Wednesday, but was "postponed", state media said, without elaborating further, as per France 24.
Meanwhile, the Iranian Consulate General in Mumbai stated that Iran has not selected any candidates for leadership.
The Consulate said in a post on X, "Reports circulating on media regarding potential candidates for leadership selected by Iran's Assembly of Experts have no official source and are officially denied."
https://x.com/IRANinMumbai/status/2029075963708096547?s=20
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Russia said on Wednesday that the US and Israel bear full responsibility for this latest escalation.
In a post on X, the MFA said, "Russian Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Maria Zakharova: It is clear that the geography of armed confrontation - triggered by the US-Israeli aggression against Iran - continues to spread across the Middle East. Washington & Tel Aviv bear full responsibility for this latest escalation."
"From the very first day of the US-Israeli aggression against Iran, Russia has been conducting active diplomatic efforts. The President of Russia has already held phone calls with several Arab leaders, while our Foreign Minister spoke with his counterparts," the MFA further quoted Zakharova as saying.
She further called the IAEA to find the exact scale of potential radiological risks after the attacks on Iran.
"Zakharova: We expect the IAEA leadership to find the resolve to respond clearly to the lawlessness committed by the US & Israel in Iran, providing an impartial assessment of potential radiological risks. Attempts to downplay the scale of this real threat are unacceptable."
https://x.com/mfa_russia/status/2029186346951356830?s=20
Zakharova also questioned the deaths of children in Iran caused by the strikes.
"Zakharova: President of the EU Commission Ursula von der Leyen says the people of Iran have gained "new hope for the future", justifying the removal of the legitimate leaders of sovereign states. How many innocents - including children - must be killed for this "hope"? It's a non-question; they simply don't care."
https://x.com/mfa_russia/status/2029190121925607454?s=20
"The latest escalation in the Middle East has once again exposed the EU's inability to play a meaningful role in international affairs, & its complete subordination to Washington. The EU has failed even to reach a common position on how to respond to the crisis," she added.
https://x.com/mfa_russia/status/2029240454785777783?s=20
Secretary of the Supreme National Security Council of Iran, Ali Larijani, said that the death of so many American troops is against America's narrative of 'America first'.
In a post on X, he said, "Mr. Trump, with Netanyahu's clownish antics, dragged the American people into an unfair war with Iran. Now let him do the math: with over 500 American troops killed (in these past few days), is it still "America First," or "Israel First"? The saga continues. The martyrdom of Imam Khamenei will exact a heavy price from you. God willing."
https://x.com/alilarijani_ir/status/2029211268624658898?s=20
The Organisation of Islamic Cooperation also on Wednesday denounced the attempt to target Turkiye with an Iranian ballistic missile.
"OIC General Secretariat expresses its denunciation of the attempt to target the Republic of Turkiye with an Iranian ballistic missile."
https://x.com/OIC_OCI/status/2029214197611933876?s=20
Meanwhile, Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto has travelled to Moscow to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin to secure guarantees on oil and natural gas imports, amid a dispute over damage to the Druzhba pipeline. The minister warned that the world is facing an energy crisis because of the war in Iran.
https://x.com/mfa_russia/status/2029235139604087055?s=20
Europe's gas coordination group has met in Brussels. They said there is no immediate threat, but they are deeply concerned about the situation that is continuing to escalate in the Middle East. They're going to watch a number of things, apart from the prolongation of the conflict, such as how far the damage goes and how much it's going to affect the supply lines, Al Jazeera reported.
The conflict has not directly impacted the supply of gas or oil to Europe yet, but it's going to have an impact in the long run when it pushes prices further up. The Qataris have now stopped producing liquefied natural gas, and the largest oil refinery in Saudi Arabia has also stopped working, as per Al Jazeera.
Greek frigates arrived in Cyprus as countries sent air-defence forces.
Meanwhile, MEA cautioned against falling prey to fake news and said that Indian ports were not being used for attacks against Iran.
"Fake News Alert! Claims being made on OAN, a US-based channel, that Indian ports are being used by the US Navy are fake and false. We caution you against such baseless and fabricated comments."
https://x.com/MEAFactCheck/status/2029233689570492805?s=20
The number of people killed in five days of US-Israeli attacks against Iran has topped 1,000, state media says, as quoted by Al Jazeera.