India, July 5 -- The week-long funeral ceremonies for former Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei could turn out to be a mass-casualty incident. Iranian authorities are preparing for between 1,500 and 3,000 people to be killed, according to a report by German newspaper WELT, which cited a classified document and municipal sources. Track live updates here

The Iranian Red Crescent and the National Crisis Management Organization warned first vice president Mohammad-Reza Aref in a confidential letter that overcrowding and extreme summer heat could cause thousands of deaths during the funeral processions, as per the newspaper.

The claims could not be independently verified.

Authorities have reportedly formed a special unit to deal with death...