Iran's supreme leader has been assassinated, US President Trump says
There are indications that Iran's supreme leader Ali Khamenei has been assassinated, Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu said / Photo: FotoField / Shutterstock.com
Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei is dead, US President Donald Trump wrote in a post on the Truth Social platform.
Earlier, a senior Israeli official told Reuters that Khamenei was killed in a strike on his residence during a U.S.-Israeli military operation and his body has been found. The same was reported by Axios, also citing an Israeli source who cited intelligence.
There was no confirmation of this information from Tehran. Iran's Tasnim and Mehr news agencies reported that the Supreme Leader was "firmly and decisively leading on the battlefield," Reuters reported.
Khamenei came to power in 1989 after the death of Islamic revolutionary leader Ayatollah Khomeini. As Supreme Leader, he controls all branches of government, the military and the judiciary in the country. In the event of his death, hardliners from the Guardian Corps could take over the position, the U.S. CIA assessed two weeks before the operation, two sources told Reuters. This scenario is one of the possible scenarios the agency was considering, another source said.
The news is being updated.
This article was AI-translated and verified by a human editor
