Ahmadinejad “back from the dead” at Khamenei’s funeral

Iran’s former President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, long a polarizing hardline figure who served from 2005 to 2013, made a striking public reappearance on Monday among millions of mourners at the state funeral of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in Tehran.

Ahmadinejad, who had been reported killed or injured in an ‘Israeli’ airstrike at the outset of the US-‘Israel’-Iran war in late February, was photographed walking with the crowds, marking his first major public sighting since the conflict began.

Known for his nationalist and principlist ideology, confrontational rhetoric toward the West, and earlier estrangement from Khamenei’s inner circle, Ahmadinejad’s attendance highlights unexpected political alignments in the wake of the war.

Reports following the initial strikes indicated he was under house arrest restrictions after prior domestic protests; the strike near his residence in Narmak reportedly killed bodyguards but allowed him to evade confinement.

The multi-day funeral ceremonies for Khamenei, assassinated at age 86 on February 28 alongside family members during the opening US-‘Israeli’ strikes, drew hundreds of thousands to millions of participants in Tehran and the holy city of Qom.

Mourners chanted slogans against the United States and ‘Israel’, displayed placards calling for revenge, and waved symbolic red flags.

Khamenei’s son Mojtaba, appointed as the new Supreme Leader, has not appeared publicly since the assassination, prompting speculation about internal leadership dynamics.

Other sons of the late leader attended the events, joined by senior officials including President Masoud Pezeshkian and IRGC commanders.

Ahmadinejad’s presence underscores the complex factional landscape in postwar Iran. Earlier US and ‘Israeli’ discussions reportedly explored scenarios involving him in a potential postwar arrangement, though such plans were widely viewed with skepticism.