Khamenei’s funeral mourners: “We don’t want a deal, we want Trump’s head”; Iran: MOU forces U.S. to recognize Iran’s allies; U.S. suspends search for missing sailor.
Meanwhile, Macron set to be first EU leader to visit Syria, Qatar restarts maritime activity and trade with Iran and Iran war takes a toll on Trump’s ratings.
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KHAMENEI’S FUNERAL MOURNERS: “WE DON’T WANT A DEAL, WE WANT TRUMP’S HEAD”: Tehran’s streets flooded with people who gathered to mourn Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei on the biggest day yet of the week-long funeral procession, July 6.
But the funeral-goers weren’t just mourning — they were calling for vengeance. On the stage where Khamenei’s coffin was displayed, people wrote threatening messages in English that read: “Kill Trump,” while a massive red banner stretched along the length of the crowd, which called for a $100 million bounty on Trump’s head. A hanging effigy of Trump was also paraded through the procession.
IRAN: MOU FORCES U.S. TO RECOGNISE IRAN’S ALLIES: Iran’s Parliamentary speaker, Ghalibaf, called the U.S.-Iran MoU an achievement for Iran, as the U.S. is forced to recognise Iran’s allies, like the Houthis in Yemen. The official also recognised that the agreement’s implementation would be “difficult but possible.”
However, Ghalibaf also claimed that the on-and-off ceasefire has undermined security in the Middle East and proved to the neighboring countries that cooperation with the U.S. or Israel does not guarantee security anymore.
U.S. SUSPENDS SEARCH FOR MISSING SAILOR: The U.S. Navy’s 5th Fleet reported that the search has stopped for a U.S. sailor who went missing on July 1. The sailor, whose name will not be disclosed for the next 24 hours, went missing after an MH-60S helicopter crashed over the Arabian Gulf. Three more soldiers were injured in the helicopter’s emergency landing.
The search operation lasted over 102 hours, covered 14,000 square miles and included a wide variety of U.S. military vessels and aircraft. Before this incident, 13 U.S. citizens had been killed in the war in Iran so far.
MACRON SET TO BE FIRST EU LEADER TO VISIT SYRIA: France 24 reported that Emmanuel Macron is planning a visit to Syria. This will make him the first head of a Western European state to visit the country since its new leader, Ahmed al-Sharaa, came to power in 2024 after the fall of Bashar al-Assad. He will be accompanied by investors and representatives of French companies.
Despite Syria’s hostility towards Hezbollah, which supported the Assad regime, and Donald Trump’s pressure on Syria to take action against the group — Syria has refused to intervene in Lebanon. On July 2, Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani visited Beirut and told President Aoun that Damascus would continue its diplomatic efforts instead. Syria has also offered to act as a channel between Hezbollah and other Lebanese political parties.
QATAR RESTARTS MARITIME ACTIVITY AND TRADE WITH IRAN: Reuters cited Abbas Abdolkhani, an Iranian official in Doha, saying that his country plans to restart maritime trade with Qatar after an almost five-month pause.
The official said that the goods are already being shipped between Iran’s Dayyer port and Qatar’s Al Ruwais port. Both ports are mainly centered on regional trade.
On Sunday, the Transport Ministry of Qatar stated that maritime activity will resume immediately and lifted the suspension on sailing and fishing in the Gulf. There was no reason given for the temporary suspension which was issued on June 29, but it came after a Qatari citizen lost his vessel, sustained injuries which were ultimately fatal.
This comes despite extreme uncertainty in the critical waterway — just a week earlier the U.S. and Iran continued to launch strikes in the strait. This reflects the immense strain the closure of the waterway is having on regional countries.
IRAN WAR TAKES A TOLL ON TRUMP’S RATINGS: The recent Financial Times poll showed that 58 percent of U.S. voters say that Trump’s war on Iran has been too costly.
This poll also found that 44 percent believe that the war made the U.S. weaker and only 31 percent of Americans believe that the war has strengthened the country. Only a fifth of U.S. voters believe that the deal could bring about peace.
Trump’s war on Iran has sparked criticism from all sides of the political spectrum, including fellow Republicans. A declining approval rating for Trump threatens to put Republicans in a vulnerable position ahead of the midterm elections in November.
Stay safe out there.
Best,
Oleksandra.
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