Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei’s body found, says Israeli official
The remains of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei have been found after deadly strikes by U.S. and Israeli forces on his residence earlier on Saturday.
“Khamenei’s body has been found,” Reuters reported, citing a senior Israeli official.
Iranian media had reported that Mr Khamenei will hold a live broadcast to prove he is alive. But many hours after the reports, Mr Khamenei’s whereabouts remain unknown.
This comes shortly after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, in a broadcast, said there are many signs Mr Khamenei was killed during the raid on his residence on Saturday.
The death of Mr Khamenei, 86, ends his reign of over three decades over Iran.
Two top Iranian government officials, Iran’s Defence Minister Amir Nasirzadeh and Revolutionary Guards commander Mohammed Pakpour, were also killed in Saturday’s airstrikes coordinated by the U.S. and Israel.
Details of how many top Iranian officials have been killed in the joint strike carried out by U.S. and Israeli forces on Saturday are still unknown.
While the airstrikes were underway on Saturday, President Donald Trump said the U.S. is carrying out “major combat operations” to eliminate members of the Iranian regime, charging citizens to take over the country after the attack.
