US pressure leads 13 nations to cut funeral attendance

The United States conducted a high-level diplomatic campaign to dissuade foreign governments from attending the funeral of Iran's late Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, according to a report from Iran's Tasnim News Agency citing an unnamed senior Iranian source. The effort resulted in at least 13 countries withdrawing or reducing their participation in the ceremonies held in Tehran.

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio issued a confidential directive on June 26 instructing American embassies worldwide to persuade host countries that sending representatives to the funeral would be considered an unfriendly act with negative consequences for bilateral relations, the report stated. Two anonymous Arab diplomats confirmed to Tasnim that Rubio personally contacted his counterparts in at least five Arab countries to urge them not to attend. The report further alleged that U.S. ambassadors in several African nations explicitly warned that participation could lead to cuts in American development aid.

According to the Iranian assessment, the pressure campaign led 13 nations to pull back. These included three Eastern European countries, five African states, two Persian Gulf Arab...