Mourners chanted "Death to Khamenei" as they attended the funeral of Omid Sarlak, a man who was found dead after he posted a video on social media of himself setting an image of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on fire.
Hundreds gathered at the cemetery in the small Iranian town of Aligudarz on November 3 to honor Sarlak, whose family and supporters reject a police claim that he committed suicide following his viral video burning the leader's image.
In the aftermath of the burial, Iranians shared images and videos of themselves torching portraits of the 86-year-old Khamenei and Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, the founder of the Islamic republic.
SEE ALSO: Iran's Streets 'Transformed' As More Women Shun The Mandatory HijabSarlak's final Instagram stories showed a burning image of Khamenei set to archival audio of Iran's last shah, Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, with captions urging youth to rise up -- posts that turned him into a symbol of defiance after his death and sparked a new wave of "burn the portrait" videos.
"How long should we endure humiliation, poverty, and being ridden over? This is the moment to show yourself, young people. These clerics are nothing but a stream for Iran's youth to cross," Sarlak, who was in his 20s, wrote in one Instagram story.
At his graveside, crowds packed the procession vowing justice.
SEE ALSO: How Protest Musicians Became Icons And Targets In Iran's Women, Life, Freedom MovementSarlak's father was filmed at the site where his son's body was found, saying, "They killed my champion," reflecting deep distrust of the official report on the cause of death.
Police in Aligudarz alleged that Sarlak died of a self-inflicted gunshot in a car and opened a forensic probe into the death. However, social media users said authorities pressured the family to accept a suicide finding. The family has not commented on allegations that they were pressured.
In a video, Sarlak's father said his son was "surrounded" in an underground passageway and killed. The man who filmed the video added that the killers left a gun next to him to present the death as a suicide. Neither the father nor the man behind the camera explicitly accused the state of involvement.
Critics of the Islamic republic have described Sarlak's death as suspicious in social media posts.
Speaking with state television before the burial, Sarlak's father urged the public "not to pay attention" to online rumors -- an interview widely dismissed as a "forced confession" given the Islamic republic has long shown little tolerance for dissent.