Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ali Khamenei, has been killed alongside several close family members in what Iranian state media described as joint United States and Israeli airstrikes on targets inside the country.
The deaths were reported in the early hours of Sunday following missile strikes said to have occurred around 1:15 a.m. on Saturday. According to Iranian state outlets, Khamenei’s daughter, a grandchild, his daughter-in-law and son-in-law were also killed in the attack.
US President Donald Trump confirmed that the 86-year-old cleric died in the strike. Khamenei had led the Islamic Republic for nearly 37 years and was widely known for maintaining a low public profile, reportedly travelling rarely.
Earlier reports indicated that his body was recovered from the rubble of his residential compound, which was among the locations hit. He is believed to have lived there with his wife, children and grandchildren.
Family and Personal Life
Khamenei married Khojasteh Bagherzadeh in 1964. The couple had six children — four sons, Massoud, Mojtaba, Mostafa and Meysam, and two daughters, Bushra and Hoda.
Iranian state media confirmed his death shortly after midnight on Sunday, declaring: “To Allah we belong and to Him we shall return.”
In the aftermath of the strike, Iranian authorities announced a 40-day national mourning period and declared a seven-day public holiday in honour of the late leader.
The reported killings mark a dramatic escalation in regional tensions, with global attention now turning to Tehran’s likely response and the broader geopolitical consequences of the strike.
