Tehran: Iranians are experiencing mixed feelings of sadness and joy at the loss of their Supreme Leader. Iranians were mixed with both sadness and joy after state television announced that Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei, 86, Iran's Supreme Leader, had died in a US and Israeli airstrike late Saturday night into Sunday morning local time.
According to Thai News Agency, the death of Iran's Supreme Leader Khamenei has prompted large gatherings of Iranians in Engelab Square, or Revolutionary Square, in the heart of Tehran to mourn. Many were visibly distressed, weeping and holding photographs of Khamenei while waving Iranian flags to show respect for the leader who ruled for over 36 years. The Iranian government has declared a 40-day period of national mourning and seven public holidays in honor of what they call a religious martyr.
Meanwhile, reports and videos circulating on social media showed celebrations in some areas, particularly in Izeh, in southwestern Iran. Large crowds gathered, clapping and cheering with joy. Most notably, they waved flags featuring a lion and the sun-the pre-revolutionary Iranian flag-on monuments as a symbol of rejection of the current regime. Some women were seen cheering and dancing to celebrate the news of the death, viewing it as the beginning of freedom.
In addition, several family members of Khamenei, including his daughters, granddaughters, daughters-in-law, and sons-in-law, also died in the attack. The Iranian Red Crescent Society, or Iranian Red Cross, reported that more than 200 people were killed and over 750 injured in Iran. The attack affected at least 24 out of 31 provinces in Iran. This includes at least 108 deaths, mostly female students and teachers, from an attack on an all-girls primary school in Minob, Hormozgon province, in the south of the country.