Iran Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei killed, Israeli officials say
Iran Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei killed, Israeli officials say
Kim Hjelmgaard, Michael Collins and Mike Snider, USA TODAYSat, February 28, 2026 at 8:47 PM UTC
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Iran Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei killed, Israeli officials say
Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was killed in joint strikes on Iran, an Israeli source confirmed to USA TODAY.
Reuters and CNN also reported that Khamenei had been killed during the U.S. and Israel joint operation on Feb. 28.
"We feel that that is a correct story," President Donald Trump told NBC News about the reports of Khamenei's death.
Iran’s Foreign Ministry, however, has continued to insist that Khamenei and President Masoud Pezeshkian are “safe and sound.”
Khamenei, 86, had led Iran since 1989. He previously served as the president from 1981 to 1989. He was a close ally of Iran's first supreme leader, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, who led the country's 1979 revolution that overthrew the government and founded Iran's Islamic Republic.
He is credited with creating and giving increasing power to Iran's Revolutionary Guard Corp.
More: Why did the US attack Iran? What we know so far
Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei speaks during a televised message in Tehran, Iran, February 9, 2026. This image was provided by the Office of the Iranian Supreme Leader.Khamenei targeted by US-Israeli attacks
Earlier in the day, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi had told NBC News Khamenei was still alive “as far as I know.”
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“All high ranking officials are alive,” he said. “So everybody is now in its position, and we are handling this situation, and everything is fine.” Aragchi said the nation may have lost "one or two commanders, but that is not a big problem."
More: Iranian state media: 85 killed after missile blew up all-girls school
Khamenei was elected supreme leader after the death of Ruhollah Khomeini in June 1989. He became Khomeini's favored successor after he ousted Grand Ayatollah Hussein-Ali Montazeri, who had been critical of Khomeini's policies.
Khomeini came to power and created Iran as a theocratic Islamic republic by overthrowing the Shah of Iran, Mohammad Reza Pahlavi.
1 / 0Who is Ali Khamenei? See Iran's Supreme Leader in power over decades
Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Iran’s Supreme Leader, is a cleric and politician who has led Iran since 1989. He previously served as the president from 1981 to 1989. Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei waves during a meeting in Tehran, Iran, February 17, 2026. This image was provided by the Office of the Iranian Supreme Leader.
Khamenei had named three senior clerics as candidates to succeed him should he be killed, The New York Times reported in June 2025. He had gone into hiding in a bunker, seeking protection from Israeli air strikes.
Khamenei "appeared frail" after the attacks "and for the first time since assuming his role, he failed to appear at an annual event commemorating the military’s support for Iran’s 1979 revolution," the Council on Foreign Relations said in a contingency planning memorandum issued in February 2026.
The death of Khamenei "will precipitate only the second leadership change in Iran since the regime’s establishment nearly 50 years ago, and its implications will reverberate across the Middle East and around the world," the document said.
Iran's Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei (3rd from R) attends a memorial service for the late Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini alongside senior officials including Ayatollah Azari Ghomi and members of the Khomeini family in Tehran, Iran, June 7, 1989. Ayatollah Passandideh, the brother of Khomeini, and Ahmad Khomeini, the son of Khomeini are also in attendance.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei killed in attacks
Source: “AOL Breaking”
