Reports: Khamenei killed, body found

An anonymous Israeli official told domestic media that Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, had been killed in Israeli-American attacks on Saturday. A second anonymous official gave the same account to Reuters.

The successor to revolutionary leader Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini is dead, the official told the British news agency, adding that ‘his body has been found’. Khamenei, who oversaw the suppression of several waves of protest and consolidated the Islamic Republic’s regional influence, had led Iran since 1989.

The unconfirmed reports contradict an earlier statement by Foreign Minister Abbas Arakchi, who said that Khamenei and the country’s leadership were alive. The Supreme Leader, who also serves as head of state, had been expected to address the nation after the attacks.

In response, Khamenei’s office said that ‘the enemy has resorted to psychological warfare’ and urged caution.

(reuters, sab)