US President Donald Trump said early Saturday that Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was killed during coordinated US-Israeli military strikes carried out against Iran hours earlier.
In a message posted on his Truth Social platform, Trump said Khamenei was located through US intelligence capabilities and advanced surveillance systems and was eliminated in close coordination with Israel.
Trump described the operation as decisive and suggested other senior Iranian leaders were killed alongside Khamenei.
Addressing Iranians directly, Trump framed the development as a historic moment, saying it presented an opportunity for the Iranian people to reclaim control of their country.
He further claimed that members of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), the military and other security services were reluctant to continue fighting and were seeking guarantees of immunity from Washington.
“They can have immunity now,” Trump wrote, warning that those who continued to resist would face deadly consequences.
The US president also expressed hope that elements of Iran’s security apparatus would integrate peacefully with what he called “Iranian patriots” to rebuild the country.
Trump said Iran’s infrastructure had sustained extensive damage in a single day of strikes. He added that despite confirming Khamenei’s death, US-led bombardment would continue throughout the week, or as long as deemed necessary, to achieve what he described as broader regional and global peace objectives.
Iranian authorities had not immediately issued an official confirmation of Khamenei’s reported death.
