As the funeral of Iran's late supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei continues, his body is set to be taken to Iraq on 8 July for processions through the holy cities of Najaf and Karbala before returning to Iran for burial in Mashhad the following day, in a highly symbolic journey that is as much about projecting Tehran's regional influence as it is about mourning its most powerful leader.
Iraqi authorities expect millions of mourners to take part in ceremonies that will last less than 24 hours, with extensive security measures and crowd-control plans put in place in Najaf and Karbala - two cities that lie at the spiritual heart of Shia Islam.
The timing is also notable. Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi has sought to strengthen economic and strategic ties with Washington while maintaining Iraq's long-standing relationship with Tehran, reflecting Baghdad's attempt to balance competing regional and international interests.
Against that backdrop, Iran's decision to bring Khamenei's body through Iraq sends a different message - that its influence in the country rests not only on political alliances, but also on deeply rooted religious, cultural and social ties.
While the funeral route reflects centuries-old religious tradition, it also serves a political purpose.
Coming after Khamenei's assassination and at a time when Iran's regional allies have come under sustained military pressure, the procession offers Tehran an opportunity to demonstrate that its influence extends well beyond its own borders.
Najaf is home to the shrine of Imam Ali, the cousin and son-in-law of the Prophet Muhammad and the first Imam in Shia Islam. Karbala contains the shrines of Imam Hussein and his brother Abbas, whose deaths in the Battle of Karbala remain the defining event in Shia religious identity.
By taking Khamenei's body to both cities, Iran is placing the late leader within the sacred geography of the Ahl al-Bayt, the family of the Prophet Muhammad who occupy a central place in Shia belief, and reinforcing the image cultivated by his supporters of a leader who defended their legacy.
Residents interviewed by local media in Najaf echoed that narrative.
Several described Khamenei as having walked "the path of the Ahl al-Bayt", while others called him "the martyr of the Islamic nation" and said hosting his funeral was an honour for Iraq's holy cities.
That framing turns the funeral into more than a mourning ceremony.
Under Khamenei, Iran sought to position itself as the centre of a regional "Axis of Resistance" against Israel and the US, bringing together Lebanon's Hezbollah, Yemen's Houthis, Palestinian factions such as Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad, and a constellation of Iraqi Shia militias and political movements.
Those Iraqi groups are central to the network. Many were formed, trained or armed by Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), and several became powerful military and political actors after the 2003 US-led invasion of Iraq and the later war against the Islamic State group.
Their influence extends beyond the battlefield into Iraq's political system and society, giving Tehran unique leverage in Iraq.
The funeral procession through Najaf and Karbala therefore serves not only as a religious tribute, but also as a visual reminder of Tehran's claim to leadership of that wider alliance.
By extending Khamenei's final journey beyond Iran's borders and into Shia Islam's holiest cities, the Islamic Republic is signalling that, despite the loss of its supreme leader and the US-Israel war on the country, its ideological project and network of allies remain intact.
According to Iraqi officials, the ceremonies will be confined to Najaf and Karbala because of the limited time available.
Iranian officials have also said Iraqi lawmakers requested that part of the funeral be held in Iraq, with the two governments coordinating security and logistical arrangements alongside the custodians of the holy shrines.