At least 60 people died and 200 were injured in a stampede yesterday during the funeral for Qassim Soleimani, the Iranian general killed by the US.

Tens of thousands had gathered in a central square in Kerman, the home town of the commander, as they prepared for his burial. Witnesses say mourners were violently pushed back from the cortege as the coffin passed, with crowds trampling on men, women and children.

Video from the scene showed bodies covered in coats as paramedics worked on the wounded. Funeral processions in cities in Iraq and Iran over three days have been an unprecedented honour for Soleimani, who is viewed by many Iranians as a national hero for heading the Guard’s elite Quds Force. A procession in Tehran on Monday drew more than a million people.

Speaking to those gathered yesterday, Hossein Salami, head of Iran’s Revolutionary Guard, vowed to avenge the killing. Soleimani was now more powerful in death than in life, he said.

“We will take revenge. We will set ablaze a place they like and they well know where it is,” he declared, prompting cries of “Death to Israel”.