AFP, TEHRAN Vast crowds of Iranians loyal to the Islamic republic yesterday massed in Tehran to begin almost a week of funeral ceremonies for slain former Iranian supreme leader Ali Khamenei. Clad in black and waving blood-red flags seen as a call for vengeance and justice under Shiite Islam, mourners thronged the Grand Mosalla religious complex in the Iranian capital. Khamenei, who had ruled Iran since 1989 and pursued a course of confrontation with the West while crushing dissent at home, was killed aged 86 along with several members of his family and top officials in an Israeli strike on the first day of the war on Feb. 28. Mourners attend the start of the dayslong funeral ceremonies for late Iranian supreme leader Ali Khamenei and members of his family in Tehran yesterday. Photo: AP Th