Thousands of mourners filled downtown Tehran on Saturday to attend the funeral of the head of the Revolutionary Guard, along with senior commanders and nuclear scientists who lost their lives during a 12-day conflict with Israel.

The caskets of chief of the Guard, and General Amir Ali Hajjizadeh, General Hossein Salami, who led the Guard’s ballistic missile program, were transported on trucks along Azadi Street in the capital.

Both Salami and Hajjizadeh lost their lives on the first day of the war, June 13, when Israel launched an assault aimed at dismantling Iran’s nuclear program by specifically targeting military leaders, scientists, and nuclear facilities.

Throughout the 12-day conflict, which ended with a ceasefire on Tuesday, Israel claimed to have killed approximately 30 Iranian commanders and 11 nuclear scientists, striking eight nuclear-related sites and over 720 military infrastructure locations.

According to the Washington-based Human Rights Activists group, more than 1,000 people were killed, including at least 417 civilians.

Iran retaliated by firing over 550 ballistic missiles at Israel, most of which were intercepted; however, those that penetrated defenses caused damage in various areas and resulted in 28 fatalities.

Saturday’s ceremonies marked the first public funerals for top commanders since the ceasefire, with Iranian state television reporting a total of 60 individuals were honored, including four women and four children. Authorities closed government offices to enable public servants to attend the ceremonies.

Iran maintains that its nuclear program is solely for peaceful purposes, while Israel views it as an existential threat, asserting that its military actions were necessary to prevent Iran from developing nuclear weapons.