Iranian leaders began paying their respects on Friday before the coffin of the country's late supreme leader Ali Khamenei, killed in the US-Israeli strikes that triggered the Middle East war, as Tehran prepared for a vast funeral.

Khamenei's body arrived at Tehran's Grand Mosalla on Friday ahead of ceremonies which are expected to draw millions.

A coterie of foreign dignitaries is also due to attend Saturday's official ceremony, with Tehran's chief negotiator calling for a massive turnout to avenge his death.

By Kanishka Singh

WASHINGTON, July 2 (Reuters) - The U.S. State Department said on Thursday that Washington "supports Pakistan's right to defend itself against terrorist attacks" as an intermittent conflict between Pakistan and neighboring Afghanistan continues.

Here are some quotes and details:

• "The Pakistani people have suffered greatly at the hands of terrorists," the State Department added.

• Former allies Afghanistan and Pakistan fought their worst battle in years in February.

By Jonathan Spicer, Iain Withers and Marc Jones

ANKARA/LONDON, July 2 (Reuters) - Canada is aiming to co-announce around 10 founding nations for a global defence bank at next week's NATO summit in Turkey, the lead Canadian negotiator told Reuters on Thursday.

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney is promoting the Defence, Security and Resilience Bank (DSRB) as part of his call this year for an alliance of "middle powers" to combat what he sees as the fracturing of the traditional U.S.-led world order.

A bomb blast rocked a cafe in Syria's capital Damascus on Thursday, killing nine people and wounding 20, authorities said, in the latest challenge for the country's Islamist leaders as they seek stability after more than a decade of war.

The bombing -- the deadliest since a suicide attack on a church last year -- was not immediately claimed.

It took place near the capital's Palace of Justice, a key government building, sparking scenes of panic in the busy area.

BEIRUT, July 2 (Reuters) - A bomb blast at a crowded cafe in central Damascus killed at least five people and wounded 16 others on Thursday, Syrian state media reported.

Syrian state TV said a bomb had been planted at the cafe, which is near the Palace of Justice in the centre of Syria's capital. There were no other immediate details on the apparent attack and no immediate claim of responsibility.

State news agency SANA reported the death and wounded toll, citing the head of Syria's emergency health services.

By Parisa Hafezi and Angus McDowall

DUBAI, July 2 - Iran's ruling clerics are preparing days of mass funeral rites for Ayatollah Ali Khamenei as a show of public devotion to the Islamic Republic and proof that its revolutionary fervor still burns strong.

Iran's supreme leader was killed by U.S. and Israeli strikes in their first attack of the war and the funeral events will begin over the weekend in Tehran, with mass processions planned next week in Qom and Mashhad and ceremonies in Iraq.

NEW DELHI, July 2 (Reuters) - India said on Thursday that its deputy foreign minister and a state governor would represent the country at the state funeral of Iran's former Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

Governor of Bihar, Syed Ata Hasnain, and deputy foreign minister Pabitra Margherita will visit Iran on July 03, the Indian foreign ministry said in a statement.

Iran and the United States concluded a round of indirect talks in Doha, mediators said Thursday, as they kept up efforts to advance negotiations and lower tensions following recent exchanges of fire.

In June, Washington and Tehran agreed a memorandum of understanding, brokered by Qatar and Pakistan, which included a 60-day ceasefire pausing the war that broke out with US-Israeli strikes in late February, as well as the reopening of the blockaded Strait of Hormuz.

July 2 (Reuters) - The European Union pledged an additional €18 million in economic support for Armenia on Thursday and liberalised some export rules for its goods as Brussels seeks to shore up support for the South Caucasus country amid Russian trade pressure.

Moscow imposed wide-ranging trade restrictions on Armenia in the lead-up to a parliamentary election in June, which saw the incumbent Civil Contract party clinch 49.8% of the votes.

Russia accused the West of interfering in the vote, and joined Armenia's opposition in alleging election violations.

BEIRUT, July 2 (Reuters) - Syria's foreign minister said during a visit to Beirut on Thursday that Syria was open to meeting the Iran-backed Lebanese group Hezbollah "if interests require it", Lebanon's state news agency reported.

Asaad al-Shibani met Lebanese government leaders including President Joseph Aoun and parliament speaker Nabih Berri, a Hezbollah ally. It was his first visit there since U.S. President Donald Trump raised the possibility of Syrian forces combating Hezbollah in Lebanon.