US president Donald Trump has asserted that he was informed Iran’s new supreme leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, is “not alive,” swiftly adding that if he is indeed alive, he should capitulate.
His speculation about Khamenei, which surfaced during a phone call with NBC News on Saturday, comes after the newly appointed Ayatollah of Iran failed to appear on camera last Thursday as expected, to deliver his inaugural statement as the beleaguered nation’s leader.
“I don’t know if he’s even alive. So far, nobody’s been able to show him,” Trump stated during an extensive phone call with NBC. “I’m hearing he’s not alive, and if he is, he should do something very smart for his country, and that’s surrender.”
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An anonymous source within the Iranian capital of Tehran reported that Khamenei, 56, allegedly lost at least one leg and sustained serious abdominal or liver injuries during a strike by the U.S. or Israel, according to The Sun and The Mirror.
The source provided numerous details regarding the new leader’s alleged medical condition, treatment, location and security arrangements. According to the source, he is receiving care at Sina University Hospital in the city’s historic quarter, where an area has been cordoned off and heavily guarded.
Whilst Iranian state television has confirmed that Khamenei sustained injuries, the source’s claims cannot be independently corroborated, in part due to Iran’s ongoing internet blackout.
In an interview with the Associated Press released this morning, Türkiye’s foreign minister Hakan Fidan stated he is unaware of the severity of the injuries but “what we know is that he is alive and functioning”.
The update comes hours after Iranian foreign minister Abbas Araghchi said there was “no problem” with the Islamic republic’s new leader after US officials claimed he had been wounded.
Yesterday, US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth said the supreme leader is “wounded and likely disfigured”.
