Ashura ceremonies intertwine faith and support for state in Iran

State-backed Ashura events showcase leaders killed by US, Israel, seen as martyrs in the mould of Imam Hussein.Since the start of Muharram – the first month of the Islamic calendar – last week, black cloths have been draped across many of the passageways and neighbourhoods in Tehran and other Iranian cities as a sign of mourning.Wednesday and Thursday marked Tasua and Ashura, declared public holidays in Iran each year by the authorities to mourn the killing more than 1,300 years ago of Hussein ibn Ali, the grandson of the Prophet Muhammad and the third of 12 Shia Muslim imams.Recommended Stories list of 3 itemslist 1 of 3Pragmatic choice: Israel’s war backfires as Gulf backs US-Iran deallist 2 of 3Iran accuses NATO of ‘complicity’ in US war: What role did EU nations play?list 3 of 3IRGC warns against new Hormuz route for ships: What we knowend of listFor the Islamic Republic of Iran, Ashura is also a political affair.The state presents itself as being a continuation of Hussein, the “martyred” leader, who chose to die along with his fighters and family members during an uprising instead of bowing down to what he perceived to be the unjust rule of the Umayyad caliphs of the time.In this vein, slain commanders of the Tehran-backed, and predominantly Shia, “axis of resistance” – such as Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and Hezbollah’s Hassan Nasrallah – are believed by supporters to have attained the highest levels of honour in death.Khamenei, who held absolute power for nearly 37 years, is now called “seyyed ol-shohada” or the most exalted of martyrs, by state media and some followers, which is the title most associated with Imam Hussein.More than four months after his death at the start of the war with the United States and Israel in downtown Tehran on February 28, Khamenei is slated to be buried the second week of July, during the month of Muharram. After six days of events across multiple cities, Khamenei will be buried in the holy Shia shrine of Imam Reza in northeastern Mashhad.