Thousands of Iranians have taken part in the funeral procession for Ayatollah Abbas Va’ez Tabasi, the custodian of Imam Reza Holy Shrine, in the northeastern city of Mashhad.

Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei took part in a funeral ceremony for Ayatollah Va’ez Tabasi on Saturday and led the prayers.

President Hassan Rouhani and Parliament Speaker Ali Larijani were also among the senior Iranian officials who attended the funeral in Iran's second biggest city.

Ayatollah Tabasi died at the age of 80 on Friday a week after being hospitalized for respiratory complications.

Ayatollah Khamenei and President Rouhani had earlier issued messages of condolences on the death of the veteran cleric.

Ayatollah Tabasi had served as the custodian of Astan Quds Razavi, a charity foundation that oversees the holy shrine of Imam Reza and various related institutions, since the victory of the Islamic Revolution in 1979.

The senior cleric had been directly appointed to the position by the late founder of the Islamic Republic, Imam Khomeini.

He was also a member of Iran’s Expediency Council and the Assembly of Experts.

Ayatollah Va’ez Tabasi was born in Mashhad in 1935. He was laid to rest at the Imam Reza shrine on Saturday.