Khamenei’s Funeral: The Triumph of Defiance

by Konstantin Malofeev

Konstantin Malofeev on why Khamenei won.

Today is Ali Khamenei’s funeral. It was delayed for more than four months because of the war. Netanyahu would have had the shamelessness to strike the funeral procession itself. Ukraine did exactly that in Donbass and Zaporizhzhia. And here we also have “high-value targets.”

There is still a risk now. But it doesn’t matter to the representatives of more than 100 countries who have come to the ceremony. Attending the funeral is a matter of principle. For all those who came to honor his memory, regardless of race or faith, Khamenei is the model of a 21st-century leader. The Rahbar [Supreme Leader] of the Islamic Republic of Iran had the chance to avoid death. Instead, he chose the path of self-sacrifice to preserve his country’s political and spiritual sovereignty. And he prevailed.

The war did not begin in February. It started earlier, with a series of terrorist strikes in 2024–2025. Iran lost prominent scientists and half of its spiritual leaders, but it never gave an inch. It responded to every blow in kind. That is why it is now negotiating with the global hegemon from a position of strength.

Ali Khamenei and Iran are an example for us Russians: do not retreat and do not surrender.

(Translated from the Russian)