Iran's authorities are considering a three-day closure of Tehran around the funeral of late Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, the commander of the capital's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said on June 22.

The funeral, repeatedly postponed since Khamenei was killed in a joint US-Israeli air strike on his Tehran compound in late February, has become a test of the authorities' ability to stage a mass display of loyalty at a moment of war and contested succession. Khamenei led Iran from 1989 until his death, which the government confirmed on March 1.

General Hassan Hassanzadeh, commander of the Mohammad Rasoulollah Corps of Greater Tehran, told a news conference that proposals for a three-day closure of the capital had been approved at Tehran provincial level and would be announced officially if endorsed by the national coordination headquarters. He said the closure on the day of the procession itself was already confirmed under a national ruling.

Farewell prayers over the body will be held at Tehran's Mosalla on Tir 13 and 14, corresponding to July 4 and 5, with the procession through the capital on July 6, Hassanzadeh said. He described the gathering as the largest in the history of the Iranian nation.

Hassanzadeh said planners were preparing for the attendance of several million mourners from inside the country, alongside others travelling from abroad, and that multiple procession routes had been chosen because no single route could accommodate the expected turnout.

He said summer heat was being factored into the planning, and that pilgrim service complexes would be set up at the entrances to Tehran, where cars and buses would stop before mourners continued by public transport.

Those wishing to take part would be asked to register through systems to be announced, Hassanzadeh said, urging the public to take information only from the official organising headquarters.

Iranian authorities are fearful of reprisal attacks against Islamist leaders, with security officials suspecting potential targeting of key security individuals, many of whom have not been seen since before the war in February. 

Khamenei's son, who took over the role of Supreme Leader days after his father's funeral, is believed to appear in public during the funeral, according to some sources close to authorities in Tehran, IntelliNews learned.