Tehran, July 7 -- Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmail Baghaei has said the late Supreme Leader Ayatollah Seyed Ali Khamenei will one day be regarded as the "second Imam Hussain", according to NDTV.

Speaking to foreign journalists during Khamenei's funeral ceremonies on Tuesday, Baghaei said the late leader's assassination would be remembered as "a turning point in Islam, Shi'ism and Iran".

"Ayatollah Khamenei will be regarded as the second Imam Hussain in 100 years from now," he said.

Parallel with Karbala

Baghaei said many Iranians had drawn comparisons between Khamenei's death and the martyrdom of Imam Hussain, the grandson of the Prophet Muhammad, who was killed in the Battle of Karbala in 680 CE. Imam Hussain's sacrifice ...