The Supreme Leader of Iran has been killed in an Israeli air strike, it was reported late on Saturday.
The body of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei is said to have been found in the rubble of his compound in Tehran.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said: “All indications show this tyrant is no longer with us.”
He is believed to have been shown a photograph of Khamenei’s shrapnel-riddled corpse by Israeli intelligence officials.
The image has also been shown to US President Donald Trump, it is understood.
There has yet to be a formal statement of his death, which has not been confirmed by Iranian officials.
The 86-year-old ruler of the Islamic Republic succeeded its founder Ayatollah Khomeini in 1989.
As leader he has presided over a regime which has been responsible for a reign of terror domestically, most recently seen in the murder of thousands of protestors on the streets of Iranian cities.
Abroad, Khamenei’s rule has been seen extensive sponsorship of terrorist organisations used as proxies for Iran, including Hezbollah in Lebanon and Hamas in Gaza.
Both militias have been left barely intact after large-scale military and intelligence campaigns by Israel in the wake of October 7, 2023.
Khamenei’s death will be seen by many observers as the latest instalment of payback for the massacre carried out that day.
His regime has repeatedly pledged to destroy the state of Israel and has been working for years on a nuclear weapons programme in breach of international law.
Khamenei’s death if confirmed would be major blow for the US and Israel as they attempt to create the conditions for regime change with the ongoing air campaign which began early on Saturday morning.
According to reports in Israel, other high-ranking members of the regime had been killed in the coordinated joint air campaign with the US against Iran.
Those who died are said to include army chief General Amir Hatami, and Mohammad Pakpour, commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), the regime’s notorious militia.
The Reuters news agency said a source in Iran close to the regime had confirmed multiple senior officials and military commanders had died, without specifying any names.
As reports came through of Khamenei’s death, Iran security official lashed out with threats in response, posting on X: “We will make the Zionist criminals and the vile Americans regret it.
“The brave soldiers and the great nation of Iran will deliver an unforgettable lesson to the hell-bound oppressors of the international order.”
Earlier, Iran’s foreign minster Abbas Araghchi claimed in an interview with the NBC network: “All high-ranking officials are alive.
“So everybody is now in position, and we are handling this situation, and everything is fine.”
A new Supreme Leader would formally have to be selected by clerical body the Assembly of Experts.
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