In what could very well be a turning point in the history of Iran and the Middle East, US President Donald Trump claimed that Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, was dead following the joint US-Israeli military operation against Tehran on Saturday.
There was no official response from Iranian authorities about Trump’s claim of the Supreme Leader’s killing. But Ayatollah Khamenei’s official account on X posted an image featuring Imam Ali’s title “Hyder,” which, in Iran, serves as a battle cry. It also showed a clerical figure, holding a sword on fire.
The joint Israel-US attack on Iran began on Saturday morning, and some of the first strikes hit areas around the offices of Khamenei, who had reportedly already been moved to a secure location.
A satellite photo put out by the New York Times showed damage to Khamenei’s compound in Tehran, which also serves as his official residence.
“Thirty bombs were dropped on the complex. Ali Khamenei was underground, but probably not in his own bunker,” Channel 12’s Amit Segal, who is known to be close to Netanyahu, said.
Here’s a before-and-after of satellite images showing damage to Khamenei’s residence.
At the time, news agency Reuters reported that Khamenei was not in Tehran and had already moved to a safehouse. A lot has changed since then. Since the strikes, Iran has launched retaliatory attacks against Israel and Gulf states hosting American military bases. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu later said that “Israel believes that the Supreme Leader is dead”.
When Was Khamenei Last Seen?
Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei’s last known public appearance was on February 17, over ten days before Israel’s US-backed joint military strikes, according to his official website.
He addressed a gathering of thousands from East Azerbaijan Province at the Imam Khomeini Hussainiyah, marking the anniversary of the 1978 Tabriz uprising.
During the speech, he sharply criticised the United States.
“I will also say a few words about the US. It’s a system that is truly in decline. It’s an empire that’s heading toward a collapse,” he said.
“As for the crumbling US empire, it truly is crumbling; they have problems in their economy, problems with their policies, and problems in their society. More than 50 per cent of the US population doesn’t approve of their current president.”
He added that tensions between Tehran and Washington stemmed from what he described as American ambitions toward Iran.
“The problem we have with the United States is that they want to devour Iran, and the Iranian nation is preventing them. The Islamic Republic stands in their way.”
Addressing Trump directly during the same speech, Khamenei dismissed US threats of military confrontation.
“As for the things the US President says… sometimes he threatens, and sometimes he says this must be done or that must not be done. What this signifies is that they’re seeking to dominate the Iranian nation.”
He added that the United States lacked the capacity for sustained conflict.
“The strongest military force in the world may at times be struck so hard that it cannot get up again.”
Referring to longstanding tensions, he said: “For 47 years, the United States hasn’t been able to eliminate the Islamic Republic… I say, ‘You, too, won’t be able to do such a thing.'”
