VIDEO: Iran to hold mass funeral on Saturday for 60 top brass killed in 'Israeli' strikes

Iran is set to hold a state funeral Saturday in Tehran for approximately 60 individuals, including high-ranking military officials and nuclear scientists, killed during its 12-day war with 'Israel', a conflict that also drew direct US military involvement.

The funeral, expected to begin at 7:30 AM (GMT+3) in Enghelab Square and continue with a procession to Azadi Square, will honor military leaders, nuclear experts, and civilians killed in 'Israeli' airstrikes, according to Iranian officials.

The country’s health ministry reported at least 627 civilian deaths from 'Israeli' attacks. Among those to be buried are Major General Mohammad Bagheri, deputy commander of Iran’s armed forces, his wife and journalist daughter, as well as prominent nuclear physicist Mohammad Mehdi Tehranchi and his spouse.

“This will be a historic day for Islamic Iran and the revolution,” said Mohsen Mahmoudi, head of Tehran's Islamic Development Coordination Council.

Iran and 'Israel' both declared victory following the June 13–25 conflict, which ended in a ceasefire. The US had joined the fray by striking three Iranian nuclear facilities in coordination with 'Israel', prompting fierce rhetoric from all sides. Despite the attacks, Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei downplayed the damage, asserting the US strikes had achieved “nothing significant.”

However, tensions reignited Friday when Trump posted a barrage of posts on his Truth Social platform, accusing Iran of falsely claiming victory. He also revealed that during the war, he knew “EXACTLY where [Khamenei] was sheltered” and claimed to have prevented a US-'Israeli' assassination attempt.

“I SAVED HIM FROM A VERY UGLY AND IGNOMINIOUS DEATH,” Trump wrote, adding that he had been considering lifting sanctions on Iran, but halted those efforts after what he called Tehran’s “anger, hatred, and disgust.”

Iran’s foreign minister Abbas Araghchi condemned Trump’s comments as deeply disrespectful. “If President Trump is genuine about wanting a deal, he should put aside the disrespectful and unacceptable tone towards Iran’s Supreme Leader,” he wrote on social platform X. He also hailed Iran’s resistance, stating, “The Great and Powerful Iranian People… do not take kindly to Threats and Insults.”

The conflict saw significant losses on both sides. 'Israel' reported 28 deaths from Iranian missile and drone strikes, while Iran’s government plans to bury at least 60 people on Saturday, including four children and over 30 senior military officers, such as Revolutionary Guards commander Hossein Salami, killed on the war’s opening day.

The war erupted amid stalled diplomatic efforts to revive the 2015 nuclear deal, which Trump unilaterally exited in 2018. That agreement, brokered under President Barack Obama, had aimed to prevent Iran from developing nuclear weapons while permitting civilian nuclear activity. Since the US withdrawal, Tehran has accelerated its enrichment and research efforts.

Trump had hinted that new negotiations with Iran could begin next week. However, Khamenei dismissed the prospect of renewed talks, insisting Iran would not yield to US coercion. “The American president exaggerated events in unusual ways,” Khamenei said Thursday, rejecting claims that the war had set back Iran’s nuclear program by decades.

Meanwhile, 'Israel’s' foreign minister Gideon Saar maintained that 'Israeli' action was necessary to preempt an existential threat. “Israel acted at the last possible moment… the international community now has an obligation to prevent, through any effective means, the world’s most extreme regime from obtaining the most dangerous weapon,” Saar said.