'Expected him to be unpopular': Trump shocked by Khamenei funeral turnout
US President Donald Trump has said he was "shocked" by the massive turnout at the funeral of Iran’s assassinated supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, saying he had expected the late leader to be widely unpopular.
Trump told Axios, "I was shocked. I thought people hated him.”
"Maybe it's fake tears," he said, after seeing mourners crying during the funeral ceremonies.
He reiterated Iran was “begging to make a deal”, a claim he made in an interview with CNBC on Friday. He said both sides agreed to pause talks until the funeral proceedings conclude.
"They are all there. One shot and we can take them all out, but we are not going to do that because then we would have nobody to negotiate with." He said neither side would launch attacks during the funeral period.