ERBIL, Kurdistan Region of Iraq – Iran on Friday began the funeral processions for slain Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, with regional and international leaders, diplomats, and official delegations arriving in Tehran to attend the ceremonies.

The funeral is expected to draw representatives from over 100 countries, according to Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmail Baghaei.

Kurdistan Region President Nechirvan Barzani arrived in the Iranian capital on Friday morning to participate in the ceremony. Barzani met with Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi shortly after his arrival.

Khamenei was killed on the first night of the joint US-Israeli war on Iran on February 28. Iran confirmed his death on March 1, and he was succeeded by his son, Mojtaba, who was appointed supreme leader by Iran's Assembly of Experts just days later.

Khamenei, 86, was born in Mashhad and served as Iran's highest political and religious authority for nearly 37 years, making him the country's longest-serving leader since the 1979 Islamic Revolution.

He was a staunch opponent of the US and Israel, advancing the Islamic Republic's ideology by supporting regional proxy groups against both countries and repeatedly calling for their elimination.

At least eight heads of state, including presidents and prime ministers, as well as 12 parliament speakers, several foreign ministers, and other official delegations, are expected to attend the ceremonies, according to Baghaei. 

The foreign ministry spokesperson added that delegations and public figures from Eastern Europe will also attend, but said European countries that had officially supported the “military aggression” by the US and Israel against Iran had not been invited.