A cloud of uncertainty hangs over the status of Iran’s top leadership following coordinated military strikes by the United States and Israel on Tehran this past Saturday. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Aragchi, in an interview with NBC, stated that Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and President Masoud Pezeshkian remain alive “as far as I know,” asserting the situation was “under control” with most high-ranking officials safe, aside from a few military commanders.
Contradicting these assurances, Israeli media outlets have circulated growing assessments within their military intelligence suggesting Khamenei may have been killed in the attacks. Channel 12, citing anonymous Israeli government sources, reported there are “growing indications” the Supreme Leader perished, though the Israeli government has not officially confirmed this. Concurrently, Israel’s Kan state TV reported a complete lack of contact with Khamenei, leaving his fate unknown.
The strikes reportedly targeted nearly all senior Iranian leaders. According to three separate sources familiar with the matter who spoke to Reuters, Iran’s Defence Minister Amir Nasirzadeh and Revolutionary Guards (IRGC) commander Mohammad Pakpour are believed to have been killed. An unconfirmed report from an Iranian establishment source also indicated several senior IRGC commanders and political officials had died, though Middle East Eye could not independently verify these claims.
Iranian state media moved to project stability, confirming that areas near the presidential palace and Khamenei’s compound were struck but reporting that President Pezeshkian, Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, Foreign Minister Aragchi, and other key figures were unharmed. An official told Reuters that Khamenei was not in Tehran during the attack and had been relocated to a secure location.
The attacks have triggered a significant regional escalation. Iran launched retaliatory strikes targeting Israel and several Gulf states, including Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Kuwait, Bahrain, and Qatar, with explosions reported near U.S. bases. A tragic strike on a school in southern Iran is reported to have killed at least 50 girls, aged between seven and twelve, though the full civilian casualty toll remains unclear.
The operation, described by former U.S. President Donald Trump in an eight-minute speech on Truth Social as “major combat operations in Iran,” was justified as a measure to prevent Iran from “threatening America and our core national security interests” through its nuclear program and long-range missile development. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu framed the offensive as an effort to enable the Iranian people “to throw off the yoke of tyranny.”
This event marks a severe intensification of hostilities, echoing Israel’s 12-day war on Iran in June of last year, which saw the assassination of several top Iranian military officials and nuclear scientists.