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CTV News
an hour ago
- Politics
- CTV News
Hundreds of thousands mourn top Iranian military commanders and scientists killed in Israeli strikes
People mourn over the flag-draped coffins of Iranian nuclear scientists who were killed in Israeli strikes, during a funeral ceremony in Tehran. Iran, Saturday, June 28, 2025. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi) DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — Hundreds of thousands of mourners lined the streets of downtown Tehran on Saturday for the funeral of the head of the Revolutionary Guard and other top commanders and nuclear scientists killed during a 12-day war with Israel. The caskets of Guard's chief Gen. Hossein Salami, the head of the Guard's ballistic missile program, Gen. Amir Ali Hajizadeh and others were driven on trucks along the capital's Azadi Street as people in the crowds chanted: 'Death to America' and 'Death to Israel.' Salami and Hajizadeh were both killed on the first day of the war, June 13, as Israel launched a war it said meant to destroy Iran's nuclear program, specifically targeting military commanders, scientists and nuclear facilities. State media reported more than one million people turned out for the funeral procession, which was impossible to independently confirm, but the dense crowd packed the main Tehran thoroughfare along the entire 4.5 kilometre (nearly three mile) route. There was no immediate sign of Iran's Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, in the state broadcast of the funeral. Khamenei, who has not made a public appearance since before the outbreak of the war, has in past funerals held prayers for fallen commanders over their caskets before the open ceremonies, later aired on state television. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi was on hand, and state television reported that Gen. Esmail Qaani, who heads the foreign wing of the Revolutionary Guard, the Quds Force, and Gen. Ali Shamkhani were also among the mourners. Shamkhani, an adviser to Khamenei who was wounded in the first round of Israel's attack and hospitalized, was shown in a civilian suit leaning on a cane in an image distributed on state television's Telegram channel. Iran's Revolutionary Guard was created after its 1979 Islamic Revolution. Since it was established, it has evolved from a paramilitary, domestic security force to a transnational force that has come to the aid of Tehran's allies in the Middle East, from Syria and Lebanon to Iraq. It operates in parallel to the country's existing armed forces and controls Iran's arsenal of ballistic missiles, which it has used to attack Israel twice during the Israel-Hamas war in the Gaza Strip. Over 12 days before a ceasefire was declared on Tuesday, Israel claimed it killed around 30 Iranian commanders and 11 nuclear scientists, while hitting eight nuclear-related facilities and more than 720 military infrastructure sites. More than 1,000 people were killed, including at least 417 civilians, according to the Washington-based Human Rights Activists group. Iran fired more than 550 ballistic missiles at Israel, most of which were intercepted, but those that got through caused damage in many areas and killed 28 people. Saturday's ceremonies were the first public funerals for top commanders since the ceasefire, and Iranian state television reported that they were for 60 people in total, including four women and four children. Authorities closed government offices to allow public servants to attend the ceremonies. Many in the crowd expressed feelings of anger and defiance. 'This is not a ceasefire, this is just a pause,' said 43-year-old Ahmad Mousapoor, waving an Iranian flag. 'Whatever they do, we will definitely give a crushing response.' State media published images of an open grave plot at Tehran's sprawling Behesht-e-Zahra cemetery where army chief of staff, Gen. Mohammad Bagheri, who was killed on the first day of the war, was to be buried beside his brother, a Guards commander killed during the 1980s Iran-Iraq war. Many of the others were to be buried in their hometowns. The Iranian judiciary's Mizan news agency confirmed that the top prosecutor at the notorious Evin prison had been killed in an Israeli strike on Monday. It reported that Ali Ghanaatkar, whose prosecution of dissidents led to widespread criticism by human rights groups, would be buried at a shrine in Qom. Iran has always insisted its nuclear program is only for peaceful purposes. But Israel views it as an existential threat and said its military campaign was necessary to prevent Iran from building an atomic weapon. Khamenei's last public appearance was June 11, two days before hostilities with Israel broke out, when he met with Iranian parliamentarians. On Thursday, however, he released a pre-recorded video, in his first message since the end of the war, filled with warnings and threats directed toward the United States and Israel, the Islamic Republic's longtime adversaries. The 86-year-old downplayed U.S. strikes on three Iranian nuclear sites as having not achieved 'anything significant' and claimed victory over Israel. The head of the United Nations nuclear watchdog agency, Rafael Grossi, has characterized the damage done by American bunker-buster bombs to Iran's Fordo nuclear site, which was built into a mountain, as 'very, very, very considerable.' David Rising, The Associated Press
Yahoo
7 hours ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Thousands mourn top Iranian military commanders and scientists killed in Israeli strikes
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Thousands of mourners lined the streets of downtown Tehran on Saturday for the funeral of the head of the Revolutionary Guard and other top commanders and nuclear scientists killed during a 12-day war with Israel. The caskets of Guard's chief Gen. Hossein Salami, the head of the Guard's ballistic missile program, Gen. Amir Ali Hajizadeh and others were driven on trucks along the capital's Azadi Street as people in the crowds chanted: 'Death to America' and 'Death to Israel.' Salami and Hajizadeh were both killed on the first day of the war, June 13, as Israel launched a war it said meant to destroy Iran's nuclear program, specifically targeting military commanders, scientists and nuclear facilities. There was no immediate sign of Iran's Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, in the state broadcast of the funeral. Khamenei, who has not made a public appearance since before the outbreak of the war, has in past funerals held prayers for fallen commanders over their caskets before the open ceremonies, later aired on state television. Over 12 days before a ceasefire was declared on Tuesday, Israel claimed it killed around 30 Iranian commanders and 11 nuclear scientists, while hitting eight nuclear-related facilities and more than 720 military infrastructure sites. More than 1,000 people were killed, including at least 417 civilians, according to the Washington-based Human Rights Activists group. Iran fired more than 550 ballistic missiles at Israel, most of which were intercepted, but those that got through caused damage in many areas and killed 28 people. Saturday's ceremonies were the first public funerals for top commanders since the ceasefire, and Iranian state television reported that they were for 60 people in total, including four women and four children. Authorities closed government offices to allow public servants to attend the ceremonies. Iran has always insisted its nuclear program is only for peaceful purposes. But Israel views it as an existential threat and said its military campaign was necessary to prevent Iran from building an atomic weapon. Khamenei's last public appearance was June 11, two days before hostilities with Israel broke out, when he met with Iranian parliamentarians. On Thursday, however, he released a pre-recorded video, in his first message since the end of the war, filled with warnings and threats directed toward the United States and Israel, the Islamic Republic's longtime adversaries. The 86-year-old downplayed U.S. strikes on three Iranian nuclear sites as having not achieved 'anything significant' and claimed victory over Israel. The head of the United Nations nuclear watchdog agency, Rafael Grossi, has characterized the damage done by American bunker-buster bombs to Iran's Fordo nuclear site, which was built into a mountain, as 'very, very, very considerable.'
The Independent
7 hours ago
- Politics
- The Independent
Thousands mourn top Iranian military commanders and scientists killed in Israeli strikes
Thousands of mourners lined the streets of downtown Tehran on Saturday for the funeral of the head of the Revolutionary Guard and other top commanders and nuclear scientists killed during a 12-day war with Israel. The caskets of Guard's chief Gen. Hossein Salami, the head of the Guard's ballistic missile program, Gen. Amir Ali Hajizadeh and others were driven on trucks along the capital's Azadi Street. Salami and Hajizadeh were both killed on the first day of the war, June 13, as Israel launched a war it said meant to destroy Iran's nuclear program, specifically targeting military commanders, scientists and nuclear facilities. Over 12 days before a ceasefire was declared on Tuesday, Israel claimed it killed around 30 Iranian commanders and 11 nuclear scientists, while hitting eight nuclear-related facilities and more than 720 military infrastructure sites. More than 1,000 people were killed, including at least 417 civilians, according to the Washington-based Human Rights Activists group. Iran fired more than 550 ballistic missiles at Israel, most of which were intercepted, but those that got through caused damage in many areas and killed 28 people. Saturday's ceremonies were the first public funerals for top commanders since the ceasefire, and Iranian state television reported that they were for 60 people in total, including four women and four children. Authorities closed government offices to allow public servants to attend the ceremonies. Iran has always insisted its nuclear program is only for peaceful purposes. But Israel views it as an existential threat and said its military campaign was necessary to prevent Iran from building an atomic weapon.
CNN
a day ago
- Politics
- CNN
Hegseth, Trump Lecture Media On How To Report Iran Strikes - CNN NewsNight with Abby Phillip - Podcast on CNN Podcasts
Hegseth, Trump Lecture Media On How To Report Iran Strikes CNN NewsNight with Abby Phillip 47 mins Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth alleges that several media outlets, including CNN, are misrepresenting the Iran nuclear program in their coverage.
The Independent
a day ago
- Politics
- The Independent
Trump threatens to sue New York Times and CNN over Iran bomb strike reporting
President Donald Trump has threatened to sue The New York Times and CNN over its reporting on the amount of destruction caused by U.S. military strikes on Iran's nuclear program. The U.S. bombed three nuclear sites in Iran at the weekend over what it said was to stop the country from obtaining nuclear weapons. Trump did a victory lap afterwards, claiming the strikes 'obliterated' Iran's nuclear program. On Tuesday, CNN, followed by the Times, published the findings of a preliminary report that suggested the bombings only set Iran's nuclear program back by a few months, contradictory to Trump's boasting. Despite his administration confirming the American intelligence assessment on the effectiveness of last weekend's airstrikes on three key Iranian nuclear facilities is indeed real, the president took to his social media platform on Wednesday afternoon and demanded CNN terminate the reporter who broke the story. Trump targeted the two media outlets on social media, referring to them as the 'Failing New York Times' and 'Fake News CNN,' and calling their reporters 'BAD AND SICK PEOPLE.' And now, the Times is reporting Trump's lawyer, Alejandro Brito, has threatened to sue the publication, claiming it damaged the president's reputation. The Times cited a letter written by Brito and sent to the publication on Wednesday, in which he asserted that the Iran bombings were a 'historic and resounding military success' and that the Time s reporting about the preliminary report 'undermined the credibility and integrity of President Trump in the eyes of the public and the professional community.' Brito demanded that the Times 'retract and apologize for' its reporting, which he called 'defamatory' and 'unpatriotic.' The Times said its lawyer, David McCraw, wrote a letter in response, which stated, 'No retraction is needed.' McCraw said the publication would not apologize, adding, 'We told the truth to the best of our ability. We will continue to do so.' A CNN spokeswoman told the Times that it had responded to a similar legal threat from Trump's team. On Wednesday, CNN released a statement that read, in part, 'We stand 100% behind Natasha Bertrand's journalism and specifically her and her colleagues' reporting of the early intelligence assessment of the U.S. attack on Iran's nuclear facilities.' Bertrand, one of the authors of CNN's reporting on the preliminary report, was called out directly by Trump, who said on social media that she should be fired and 'thrown out 'like a dog.'' When CNN released the findings of the preliminary report, it included a statement from White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt, which read, in part, 'This alleged assessment is flat-out wrong.' Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth revealed Wednesday that the preliminary report did exist. During a press conference Thursday morning, Hegeth lashed out against the press, saying, 'You cheer against Trump so hard.' CIA Director John Ratcliffe and Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard announced what they said were new findings Wednesday revealing apparent further damage to Iran's nuclear program. Ratcliffe said in a statement Iran's nuclear program had been 'severely damaged' and that it 'would have to be rebuilt over the course of years.' Gabbard also said it 'would likely take years' for Iran to rebuild the bombed nuclear sites in an X post.
