Mourners gather in Tehran, West Bank settlements accelerate

HEADLINES IN BRIEF

• Iran prepares to bury Supreme Leader killed in drone strike (READ MORE)

• Israel approves plans for 13 new settlements in occupied West Bank (READ MORE)

• Iran warns vessels against using unapproved routes in Strait of Hormuz

• Israeli settlers attack Palestinians and solidarity activists in West Bank

• US officials warned Iran of potential Israeli plot to kill key negotiators (READ MORE)

• Israel claims to have killed Hamas commander in Gaza strike

• NATO leaders expected to declare Iran must never have nuclear weapons and call on Iran to respect freedom of navigation in Strait of Hormuz

Foreign dignitaries arrive and crowds gather in Tehran for Supreme Leader's funeral

More than 20 million mourners are expected to attend the funeral procession of Iran's slain Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, which begins on Saturday (July 4).

Among the mourners will be heads of state from Pakistan, Tajikistan, Armenia and Georgia, as well as dignitaries from more than 100 countries, including China, India and Russia.

Iranian media has been reporting the arrival of figures such as Iraqi president Nizar Amidi and Kurdistan Region President Nechirvan Barzani in Tehran on Friday. More foreign delegations are expected to arrive as the day goes on.

The late Supreme Leader's son and successor, Mojtaba Khamenei, will not attend the funeral ceremonies due to security concerns, according to his representative in India. Meanwhile Ahmad Vahidi, the caretaker commander of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, has made his first public appearance since the start of the US-Israel war against Iran. He was photographed with Ayatollah Khamenei's coffin with other senior Iranian officials.

The proceeding will last for seven days and mark one of the largest public funerals in modern history. Official farewell ceremonies will take place in the capital on Saturday and Sunday, before the main funeral procession on July 6.

This funeral attendance is expected to surpass the funeral of former Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, which drew 10 million mourners.

Israel approves plans for 13 new settlements in occupied West Bank

Israel's Security Cabinet has approved a plan to establish 13 new settlements in the occupied West Bank, which Palestinian officials say will further isolate Palestinian communities from each other.

Israel's Channel 7 reported that the cabinet approved the construction of settlements on Thursday. The new plans will explore the settlement bloc in the Binyamin region, already one of the largest Israeli settlement blocs in the occupied West Bank. The bloc is situated along Route 60, a key artery for Palestinians that links cities like Nablus, Ramallah, and Bethlehem.

Officials from the Jerusalem governorate say the new settlements will specifically isolate east Jerusalem from surrounding Palestinian communities.

The first phase of the new project is expected to begin in the coming months.

Settlements are considered illegal by much of the international community, including the United Nations and the International Court of Justice. However, under Israeli domestic law settlements are officially authorized, with the Knesset regularly legalizing the building of settlements on privately owned Palestinian land retroactively. Billions of shekels are routinely funneled through state budgets to fund these outposts. 

Palestine's Jerusalem governorate called Israel's plans "a dangerous escalation" and "violations of international law", calling on the international community to step in.

US officials say they warned Iran of potential Israeli plot to kill Araghchi and Ghalibaf

US officials reportedly believed that Israel planned to kill Iran's key negotiators, Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi and the speaker of the Parliament Mohammed Bagher Ghalibaf, during peace talks between Washington and Tehran. 

US officials grew so concerned that Israel would attempt to kill top negotiators that it asked regional countries to warn Iran of the potential threat.

According to reports two Israeli fighter jets entered Iranian airspace in April, forcing a plane carrying Mr Ghalibaf back to Tehran after peace talks to make an emergency landing. Iran's security forces notified the plane crew that they had received intelligence suggesting Israel planned to attack the aircraft. Mahdi Mohammadi, a senior advisor among the roughly 70 Iranians also on the plane with Ghalibaf, confirmed this account on his social media page. 

American officials told the New York Times that" Any attempt to kill the Iranian leaders would end the talks and reignite the fighting."