Mourners dressed in black gathered on the streets of the Iranian capital Tehran to bury senior military commanders, nuclear scientists and some of the civilians killed during the war with Israel this month, Reuters reported.
At least 16 scientists and 10 senior commanders were among the mourners at the funeral, including the head of the armed forces, Major General Mohammad Bagheri, the commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, General Hossein Salami, and the head of the Guards' Aerospace Forces, General Amir Ali Hajizadeh.
Their coffins were brought to Tehran's Azadi Square was decorated with their pictures, as well as rose petals and flowers, as crowds waved Iranian flags.
State television reported that the funeral, dubbed the "funeral procession of the martyrs of power", was held for a total of 60 people killed in the war, including four women and four children.
The funeral was attended by President Massoud Pezeshkian and other senior figures, including Ali Shamkhani, who was seriously wounded during the conflict and is an adviser to Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
Israel, the only country in the Middle East believed to possess nuclear weapons, has said its war against regional rival Iran was aimed at preventing Tehran from developing its own nuclear weapons.
Iran denies having a nuclear weapons program. nuclear weapons. The International Atomic Energy Agency, which inspects Iran, said there was "no credible evidence" of an active, coordinated weapons program in Iran.
A senior Israeli military official said yesterday that Israel had killed more than 30 senior security officials and 11 senior nuclear scientists during the war.
According to Iran's Health Ministry, 610 people were killed on the Iranian side in the 12-day war, including 13 children and 49 women, before a ceasefire took effect on Tuesday. More than 4,700 were wounded.
The HRANA news agency put the death toll at 974, including 387 civilians.