Middle East conflict: UP village with roots of Khomeini bloodline in grief
Times of India
by ANKUR TEWARIMarch 4, 2026
In 1834, a Shia cleric named Sayed Ahmad Musavi Hindi left the village of Kintoor in what is now UP on a pilgrimage to Iran. He settled and raised a family there, creating a lineage that would shape Iran's sociopolitical destiny - first through the 1979 Islamic Revolution led by his great-grandson Ruhollah Khomeini, and then the latter's successor Khomeini, Ali Khamenei. Almost two centuries since Musavi turned his back on Kintoor, this village around 4,000km from Tehran mourns Khamenei's killing last weekend like a death in the family. Within hours of news arriving about the air strike in which Iran's supreme leader died, Muslim residents of Kintoor - both Shia and Sunni - were out on the streets, holding portraits of Khamenei and shouting slogans against Israel and the US. Shops shut, majlis (assemblies) were organised and processions by mourners dressed in black stretched into the night. Two days on, the frisson of anger and grief hasn't subsided. \"Khamenei opted for bravery instead of surrender,\" a protester said. \"His death is worthy of remembrance.\"
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Originally published on Times of India on 3/4/2026