Iran's new Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei is recovering from severe facial and leg injuries sustained in the airstrike that killed his father at the start of the war, three people close to his inner circle told Reuters. His face was disfigured in the attack on the supreme leader's compound in central Tehran, and he suffered a significant injury to one or both legs, all three sources said.
The 56-year-old remains mentally sharp despite his wounds and is participating in meetings with senior officials via audio conferencing, taking part in decision-making on major issues including the war and the ongoing negotiations with Washington, two of the sources said. All three requested anonymity to discuss sensitive matters. Reuters said it could not independently verify their accounts.
The question of Khamenei's capacity to govern comes at a moment of acute peril for Iran, with high-stakes peace talks with the United States opening in Islamabad on Saturday.
A leader unseen since February
Khamenei was wounded on 28 February, the first day of the war launched by the US and Israel, in the strike that also killed his father and predecessor, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who had ruled since 1989. His wife, brother-in-law and sister-in-law were among the family members killed in the same attack. He was named supreme leader on 8 March.
No photograph, video or audio recording of him has been made public since the attack. Iran's state television described him after his appointment using the term "janbaz," a word reserved for those severely wounded in war. Iran's UN mission did not respond to Reuters questions about the extent of his injuries or the reason no images or recordings have been released.
The accounts given to Reuters align with a statement made by US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth on 13 March, in which he said Khamenei was "wounded and likely disfigured." A source familiar with US intelligence assessments told Reuters that Khamenei was believed to have lost a leg. The CIA declined to comment and the Israeli prime minister's office did not respond to questions.
One of the people close to Khamenei's circle told Reuters that images of the supreme leader could be expected within one or two months, and that he might appear in public at that point, though all three sources stressed he would only emerge when his health and the security situation permitted.
Power and authority in question
Analysts say the injuries are only part of the picture. Alex Vatanka, senior fellow at the Middle East Institute, told Reuters that regardless of the severity of his wounds, the new and inexperienced leader was unlikely to command the overarching authority wielded by his father. "Mojtaba will be one voice but it will not be the decisive one," Vatanka said. "He needs to prove himself as the credible, powerful, overriding voice. The regime as a whole has to make a decision in terms of where they are going to go."
In Iran's theocratic system, ultimate power rests with the supreme leader, a senior Shia Muslim cleric appointed by an assembly of 88 ayatollahs, who oversees the elected president and directly commands parallel institutions including the Revolutionary Guards. Iran's first supreme leader, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, wielded unquestioned authority as the charismatic figurehead of the revolution. His successor, Ali Khamenei, was a less revered cleric who spent decades cementing his authority after 1989, partly by promoting the power of the Revolutionary Guards.
Senior Iranian sources have previously told Reuters that Mojtaba Khamenei does not command absolute power in the same way. The Revolutionary Guards, who helped steer him into the role after his father's assassination, have emerged as the dominant voice on strategic decisions during the war. Khamenei had spent years involved in the exercise of power through his father's office, building ties with senior Guards figures, but his worldview remains largely unknown even to analysts who follow Iran closely.
His first communication as supreme leader came on 12 March, in a written statement read out by a television presenter, in which he said the Strait of Hormuz should remain closed and warned regional countries to shut US bases. He welcomed in the Persian new year on 20 March in a brief statement, naming it the "year of resistance." Broader public statements on Iran's war stance, diplomacy, ceasefire negotiations and domestic unrest have been made by other senior officials.
'Where is Mojtaba?'
Khamenei's absence is widely discussed on Iranian social media and messaging applications, when the country's heavily restricted internet allows access. Conspiracy theories about his condition and about who is actually running the country are widespread, with one popular meme circulating online showing an empty chair under a spotlight captioned "Where is Mojtaba?"
Some government supporters have pushed back on the criticism. A senior member of the Basij militia, the volunteer paramilitary force run by the Revolutionary Guards, said it was important for Khamenei to keep a low profile given the threat posed by continued US and Israeli airstrikes, which have already eliminated much of the country's leadership. A lower-ranking Basij member in the city of Qom echoed the view. "Why should he appear in public? To become a target for these criminals?" Mohammad Hosseini said in a text message.
Source: Reuters