US President Donald Trump has said he was surprised after watching scenes from the funeral ceremonies of Iran’s former Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. He said he believed many people in Iran disliked him.
In an interview with Axios, the US president said he had been following the funeral events and was struck by images of mourners crying during the ceremonies.
He said he thought that “people hated Ali Khamenei”. He then paused and added, “Maybe those tears aren’t real.”
During the conversation, he repeated his claim that the Iranians were “begging to make a deal.”
Trump’s comments came as large crowds continued to gather across Iran for funeral ceremonies following Khamenei’s death in a US-Israeli attack on February 28 on his residence, in which four members of his family were also killed, including his 14-month-old granddaughter.
Massive crowds gather in Tehran and other cities
The body of Ali Khamenei is presently in Tehran, where thousands of people have gathered to pay their respects. Representatives from several countries have also attended the ceremonies.
People at the events have been seen crying, chanting slogans and observing traditional Shia mourning rituals. Funeral and memorial ceremonies are scheduled over the course of a week in Tehran and Qom in Iran, and Najaf and Karbala in Iraq, before he is laid to rest in Mashhad, Iran, on July 9.
Iranian authorities have described the large-scale ceremonies as a display of national unity during a period of continuing tensions in the region.
On Sunday (July 5), funeral prayers for Khamenei and his family members were held at Tehran’s Mosalla Mosque. His sons (Meitham, Masoud and Mostafa) stood in the front row during the prayers.
Khamenei’s second eldest son, Mojtaba Khamenei, who was appointed the supreme leader after his father’s elimination, did not take part in the funeral prayers, according to reports.
Trump says talks have paused for a week
The US president also claimed that both sides had agreed to take a one-week break from negotiations until the funeral ceremonies were completed.
“Both sides decided to take a one-week break in talks until the funeral is over,” he said and added, “In the meantime, neither side will shoot at the other.”
He did not hesitate and issued a threat, “They are all there. One shot, and that’s enough to finish all of them, but we’re not going to do that because then there would be nobody left to negotiate with.”
The Iranian Embassy in Armenia hit back at Trump’s comments in a post on X.
“People can be killed, but ideas cannot. You killed Ayatollah Khamenei, but in reality, you broke a bottle of perfume whose fragrance has now spread everywhere. You cannot understand these things because you have neither civilisation, nor history, nor respect,” the embassy wrote.
Trump talks Iran in Independence Day speech
The US president also referred to Iran during his speech celebrating the 250th anniversary of American independence. The event, which began several hours late because of a storm, saw him describe the United States as the “greatest achievement” of human civilisation.
He said the country was now stronger than ever under his leadership. “The American military today is stronger than it has ever been,” he said.
Speaking about Iran, he declared, “We have destroyed Iran’s military power.”
He then turned to domestic policies and said that he wanted electoral reforms and planned to issue an executive order aimed at ending birthright citizenship.
Near the end of his roughly 40-minute speech, he said, “This is the beginning of a golden age for America.”
Trump said he had been advised to postpone the anniversary event because of bad weather, though he decided against it.
He faced criticism from some of his opponents, who accused him of turning Independence Day into a political event. A number of Democrat leaders did not attend the programme.
Netanyahu knows ‘who the boss is’
Trump told Axios that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had requested a meeting at the White House, which could take place after Trump returns from next week’s NATO summit.
If held, it would be the first meeting between the two leaders since the war with Iran began.
Speaking about their relationship, he said, “We have a very good relationship and Netanyahu knows who the boss is.”
The two leaders are expected to meet in Washington in the coming weeks despite recent reports of differences over the war with Iran and Israel’s military operations in Lebanon.
Citing an Israeli official, Axios reported that next week could be too early for such a meeting because Trump is scheduled to travel to Turkey for the NATO summit. According to the official, the talks may take place in the following week.
The Israeli Prime Minister’s Office also confirmed that Trump and Netanyahu spoke by telephone on Friday (July 3) and agreed to meet in the United States “soon”.
