While failing to condemn assassination of Khamenei, Maldives accepts invitation to attend his funeral
The Maldivian government announced on Monday that it has accepted an invitation to attend the funeral of Khamenei, confirming that the Maldives will be represented at the ceremony. When questioned regarding the delegation, Chief Government Spokesperson Heena Waleed stated that the Maldives' resident ambassador to the region will attend the funeral on behalf of the state.
Iran's Supreme Leader Khamenei and the President of the Republic of Maldives, Dr. Muizzu. | Social Media
While the Maldives has refrained from issuing a formal condemnation of the assassination of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the government has accepted an invitation to attend his funeral services.
Following the commencement of joint military strikes by the United States and Israel against Iran on February 28 of this year, it was officially announced on March 1 that Supreme Leader Khamenei had passed away. Iran has since scheduled the funeral proceedings for Khamenei to take place from July 4 to July 9.
The Maldivian government announced on Monday that it has received an invitation to attend the funeral of Khamenei, confirming that the Maldives will be represented at the ceremony. When questioned regarding the matter, the government's chief spokesperson, Mohamed Hussain Shareef (Mundhu), stated that the Maldives would be represented at the funeral by a resident ambassador from the region.
While the Maldives has decided to participate in Khamenei's funeral, the government has not condemned his assassination by the United States and Israel. Furthermore, President Dr. Mohamed Muizzu has repeatedly declined to comment on the matter, despite being questioned by the press on several occasions.
Furthermore, the national flag was not flown at half-mast, despite regulations stipulating such an observance—along with the declaration of public holidays—following the passing of a high-ranking leader from a foreign nation with close political ties to the Maldives.
According to the second article of the regulation, the Maldivian national flag shall be flown at half-mast for a period of three days following the passing of a head of government from an Islamic nation or a SAARC member state. The regulation specifies that this protocol applies to Prime Ministers or individuals holding equivalent positions of authority.
Iran has scheduled a funeral procession to be held in the capital, Tehran, on July 6th. A subsequent procession is also set to take place on July 7th in the holy city of Qom.
Following this, the funeral prayer for Khamenei is scheduled to take place on July 9 in the holy city of Mashhad. He will be laid to rest at the Imam Reza shrine.
The government has faced significant criticism for its failure to condemn the assassination of Khamenei, despite numerous countries and world leaders across the globe issuing formal denunciations of the act.
