US President Donald Trump said Washington would not attack Iran amid funeral processions for the late supreme leader Ali Khamenei that drew tens of thousands of people in Tehran.
"They are all there. One shot [and we can take them all out], but we are not going to do that because then we would have nobody to negotiate with," Mr Trump told US outlet Axios.
After a day lying in state indoors for senior Iranian leaders and foreign officials to visit, Khamenei's coffin was put on display under glass outdoors, along with those of his daughter, son-in-law, daughter-in-law and 14-month-old granddaughter.
There has still been no public sighting or image released of his son, the new leader, who is said to have been injured in the same attack.
Iranian security officials have rejected Mojtaba Khamenei's request to attend the burial of his father and predecessor because they fear Israel will kill him or track him back to his hiding spot, the New York Times reported on Saturday.
He reportedly asked to attend the July 9 burial in Mashhad but was refused, the Times said, citing two unnamed Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps members and a person involved in organising the multi-day funeral.
He has not been seen in public since he was injured in the same strike that killed his father, wife and son. His absence has triggered doubts and questions over his whereabouts and who is ruling in Iran. He has made written statements, but hardline Iranian conservatives have pushed back on diplomacy and negotiation efforts with the US until he appears.
Dressed in black and draped in the red, white and green flags of the Islamic Republic of Iran, mourners held up portraits of Khamenei and his son and successor, Mojtaba Khamenei. In a show of public devotion to Iran's theocratic state and revolutionary zeal, the country is staging a week of mass funeral processions for the supreme leader killed in February by the opening airstrikes of the war.
Mourners filed into the vast courtyard of the Imam Khomeini Grand Mosalla, beating their chests, wailing and waving the banners of the country. Women dressed in black chadors wore white visors or held umbrellas to shield from the hot mid-morning sun.
Mr Trump also reportedly told Axios that he was surprised to see some Iranians crying at the funeral, saying he thought people hated Khamenei. "Maybe it's fake tears," he said.
Iran's embassy in Armenia reacted to his remarks in a post on X. "You don't understand these things because you have neither civilisation, nor history, nor honour."
US and Israel launched a regional conflict after striking Iran on February 28. Tehran retaliated in an unprecedented manner by striking neighbouring Gulf countries. Washington and Tehran have been engaged in weeks-long efforts to reach a lasting deal, triggering opposition from within Israel.
Mr Trump said Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had requested a visit to the White House and that it could happen as soon as next week once he returns from the Nato summit in Turkey. This would mark the first meeting between the two since February when Mr Netanyahu reportedly presented the plan to strike Iran.
Symbolism
"Let us wail!" a compere encouraged the crowds through a loudspeaker. Chants of "Death to America" echoed through the huge prayer hall. The first day of the funeral procession coincided with July 4 celebrations in the US for Independence Day.
The funeral is taking place at a critical moment for Iran, with its clerical rulers, backed by the military, buoyed by having survived the onslaught with their ruling system intact. The war has been paused for a ceasefire under an agreement with Washington that Iran's authorities say will ultimately bring huge economic benefits, in line with what they describe as a victory over a superpower.
It remains difficult to assess how deeply public loyalty runs across a country of 90 million people beyond the displays of support.
After what authorities are billing as a massive procession in central Tehran on Monday, the remains will be taken to the seminary city of Qom, the centre of Iran's Shiite hierarchy, for ceremonies on Tuesday.
From there the body will be flown to Iraq for ceremonies in the two Shiite holy shrine cities of Najaf and Karbala on Wednesday. The body will return to Iran on Thursday for another procession in Mashhad, to be buried near the tomb of another of the mediaeval Shiite imams.
Authorities plan to mobilise millions of people for big processions over the coming days, offering transport, food and lodging.
