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Iran’s Supreme Leader and Shahed Supplier to Russia Khamenei Killed in US-Israeli Strike
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Iran’s state media and international officials have confirmed the death of Grand Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the 86-year-old Supreme Leader who has governed the Islamic Republic since 1989.
The Iranian state broadcaster and the official news agency IRNA reported on Sunday, March 1, 2026, that Khamenei was killed during a series of precision missile strikes launched by the United States and Israel.
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According to Al Jazeera, the strike targeted the Supreme Leader’s office in Tehran. The Iranian government has since declared 40 days of national mourning and a seven-day public holiday.
Casualties and operation details
The military operation, which began in the early hours of Saturday, February 28, resulted in significant casualties among Iran’s political and clerical elite.
According to Iranian Fars News Agency, at least four members of Khamenei’s immediate family were killed. These include his daughter, son-in-law, grandson, and one of his daughters-in-law.
In a statement posted on Truth Social, US President Donald Trump confirmed the death of the 86-year-old leader.
“Khamenei, one of the most evil people in history, is dead… He could not escape our intelligence and high-tech tracking systems,” Trump wrote, adding that the operation was conducted “in close cooperation with Israel.”
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Under the Iranian constitution, a temporary council has been formed to manage state affairs. This body includes the President of Iran, the Chief of the Judiciary, and a legal member of the Guardian Council. Per IRNA, the 88-member Assembly of Experts is required to elect a permanent successor “as soon as possible.”
However, reports suggest internal friction regarding the transition. Sources told Iran International that the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) is pushing to appoint a new leader immediately, bypassing standard legal procedures due to ongoing airstrikes and the inability to safely convene the Assembly of Experts.
Iran’s military support for Russia in the war against Ukraine
During his tenure, Khamenei oversaw the deepening of a highly reciprocal military partnership with Moscow.
According to The Wall Street Journal, Iran supplied Russia with thousands of Shahed drones and short-range ballistic missiles, such as the Fath-360, to support its ongoing war against Ukraine.
In return, Tehran secured access to advanced Russian military technology, including a formalized contract for 48 Su-35 fighter jets and air defense systems.
The scale of this cooperation involved individuals closely tied to the Supreme Leader’s inner circle. A Bloomberg investigation revealed that Hossein Shamkhani, the son of an adviser to Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, controlled a shipping network that accounted for “about a quarter of all weapon shipments from Iran to Russia, including drone components.”
The impact of these transfers has been significant on the battlefield; according to official statements from Kyiv, Russian forces have deployed more than 57,000 Iranian-designed Shahed-type attack drones against Ukraine since the full-scale invasion began.
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