‘We are Iran’s true missiles’: millions gather in Tehran for day four of Ali Khamenei’s funeral

People attending funeral procession in Iran’s capital express feelings of grief, anger and desire for vengeance. Photograph: Anadolu/Getty Images

Iranians poured in vast numbers on to the central thoroughfare of Tehran on the fourth day of mourning for the assassinated former supreme leader, Ali Khamenei, claiming their defiance through months of on-off war had only made them stronger as many called for revenge.

For those in the procession, it was as much a display of patriotism as mourning: a demonstration that Iran, as an ancient civilisation, had uniquely taken on the world’s greatest superpower and survived. “We the people are Iran’s true missiles,” one banner read.