Rapidfeed
Mar 02, 2026

c11.Iran’s supreme leader killed in US-Israeli strikes

US President Donald Trump called for regime change following the massive American and Israeli attack, which prompted an unprecedented wave of retaliatory strikes by Iran.  

Where things stand now

• JUST IN: Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has been killed, Iranian state media has confirmed. US President Donald Trump said a massive US attack on the country would continue with heavy bombing throughout the week.

About the strikes: Trump indicated the military operation is aimed at overturning Tehran’s government. One strike killed scores of students in an elementary school in southern Iran, according to state media.

• Unprecedented retaliation: Iran unleashed strikes on US military bases, Israel and other targets across the Middle East, rocking densely populated areas and disrupting air travel and oil shipments. The US military has reported no combat-related American casualties.

• A region on edge: The United Arab Emirates called the attacks a “historic moment” in the Middle East, saying world leaders had failed to ensure the region’s stability.

Multiple Iranian state media are confirming the death of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

“The Supreme Leader of Iran Has Reached Martyrdom,” state broadcaster IRIB reported Sunday morning.

It comes after the US and Israel said Khamenei was killed following a barrage of joint US-Israeli strikes on the nation.

Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was killed on Saturday following a series of airstrikes launched jointly by the United States and Israel.

The assassination — announced by President Trump just hours after the strikes — is expected to throw the Islamic Republic of Iran’s future into doubt and raises the prospect that the country’s theocratic government could be overthrown after nearly five decades.

Trump said the airstrikes and Khamenei’s assassination is “the single greatest chance for the Iranian people to take back their country.”

Iran, a country of over 90 million, has been controlled by Shia’ Muslims hostile to religious and ethnic minorities as well as women since seizing control following the Islamic Revolution in 1979.

The Middle Eastern country is known for its strict laws that prohibit public worship and other faith displays by religious minorities, including Baha’is, Christians and Sunni Muslims.

“Khamenei’s death is monumental for Iranians and those who care for Iran,” Steve Dew-Jones, news director for the Christian human rights watchdog group Article18, told Religion Unplugged.

The Khamenei regime is known for brutally silencing its critics or those who choose to disobey its version of Islamic law. Between Jan. 8-9 alone, an estimated 30,000 people were killed in the streets by government forces following widespread protests.

Human rights groups like Article18 have long tracked Iran’s targeted attacks on religious minorities. The organization counted 254 Christians who were arrested on charges related to their religious beliefs or activities just last year. 

Following news of Khamenei’s death, scenes of jubilation and Iranian citizens crying tears of joy were documented across the country.

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