Photo: AFP
Eurasia
22/05/2024 17:13
Khamenei has declared five days of national mourning. Memorials for Raisi and his entourage began on Tuesday in the city of Tabriz and the Shia clerical centre of Qom.
Iranian media reported that in addition to closing cinemas, the Ministry of Culture and Islamic Guidance has also halted all cultural and artistic activities across the country, including concerts, for seven days.
All Cultural Heritage Week events have been postponed, museums closed, all sports competitions suspended, wedding halls closed and wedding ceremonies postponed.
Following Wednesday’s procession, Raisi’s body will be taken to his hometown of Mashhad in the country’s northeast, where he will be buried after funeral rites at the Imam Reza Shrine.
The remains of others who were killed in the crash will also be sent to their hometowns to be buried.
Turkish First Lady Emine Erdoğan has urged U.S. First Lady Melania Trump to speak out against the humanitarian crisis in Gaza. In a letter, she called for a historic appeal to Israel and warned: “Gaza has become a children’s graveyard…It is time.”
China has signalled its willingness to send peacekeeping forces to Ukraine if a ceasefire is reached, but only under a United Nations mandate.
Chinese President Xi Jinping will host the largest-ever Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) summit from August 31 to September 1 in Tianjin, bringing together leaders from over 20 countries and 10 international organizations, a senior diplomat announced Friday.