The state funeral for Ali Khamenei was never just a funeral. Najaf and the regionalization of mourningWhat gives the ceremony its wider significance is the way it moved beyond Iran’s borders. It placed the funeral inside a broader Shi’ite and regional political space, not just an Iranian one. For factions that define themselves through resistance to the West, the funeral offers an opportunity to reassert ideological confidence. For now, the most important lesson is that the funeral did not settle Iran’s future.