Next indirect US-Iran talks after Khamenei’s funeral

DOHA/DUBAI/VIRGINIA BEACH, Virginia, July 02 (Agencies): The next indirect US-Iran talks will come after the late Iranian supreme leader's funeral, mediators said Thursday, as diplomacy inches ahead on ending the Middle East war.
Following the foes' indirect discussions in Doha on Wednesday, US President Donald Trump as well as mediators Qatar and Pakistan offered signs that diplomacy was holding, despite exchanges of fire this week.
An interim deal was agreed to reopen the vital Strait of Hormuz and end hostilities, but major questions still need to be tackled in talks, including Iran's nuclear programme.
"Qatari and Pakistani mediators concluded separate meetings with the US and Iranian negotiators in Doha (Wednesday), with positive progress made," Pakistan said Thursday.
Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was killed aged 86 at his compound in the centre of the Iranian capital on February 28, the first day of the war. Power was swiftly passed to his son Mojtaba.
Ali Khamenei's public funeral will begin on Saturday, with his body lying in state at the colossal complex in central Tehran that hosts major Friday prayers, official ceremonies and religious gatherings.
His burial will take place on July 9 at the shrine of Imam Reza in the northeastern city of Mashhad, his birthplace.
Meanwhile, an Iranian military commander warned the United States and Israel on Thursday against any attack on Iran as it prepares for the state funeral of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who was killed in airstrikes on the first day of the war.
"We warn the enemies of Iran, especially the US and the Zionist regime (Israel), to avoid any miscalculation and to think about the harsh retaliation our armed forces would make to any threat and aggression against our country," Ali Abdollahi, commander of Khatam al-Anbiya Central Headquarters, said in a statement carried by state media.
Funeral processions for Khamenei will begin on July 4 in Tehran and conclude on July 9 with his burial in his hometown of Mashhad, with additional ceremonies planned in Qom and Iraq in-between these dates.
On Wednesday, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi gave a similar warning that Tehran would deliver an immediate and powerful response to any threat against its people or leadership after comments by Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz that Iran's current Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei was "marked for death."