A person shows a portrait of Iran’s Supreme Chief Ayatollah Ali Khamenei as supporters of Iraqi Shi’ite armed teams collect to indicate assist for Iran on the day the USA and Israel launched strikes on Iran, in Basra, Iraq, on February 28, 2026.
| Photograph Credit score: Reuters
U.S. President Donald Trump mentioned on Saturday (February 28, 2026) that Iran’s supreme chief Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was lifeless, after Israel and the USA launched an assault of unprecedented scale geared toward bringing down the Islamic republic.
Cheers may very well be heard on Tehran’s streets after studies of the loss of life of Mr. Khamenei, Iran’s paramount chief since 1989, as plumes of black smoke hovered over the Pasteur district the place he normally resides, witnesses informed AFP.
“Khamenei, one of the crucial evil individuals in Historical past, is lifeless,” Mr. Trump mentioned on his Fact Social community.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu earlier mentioned there have been “many indicators that this tyrant is not alive”.
Addressing the individuals of Iran, the arch-enemy of Israel and the USA because the 1979 Islamic revolution, Mr. Netanyahu mentioned, “That is your time to hitch forces, to overthrow the regime and to safe your future.”
The strikes prompted Tehran to fireside off a missile barrage throughout the West Asia, with accidents and a minimum of one loss of life reported in explosions that rocked showcase cities in Gulf Arab monarchies.
Iranian authorities urged residents to evacuate the capital, a metropolis of 10 million, whereas the nation’s Pink Crescent society mentioned that a minimum of 201 individuals had been killed within the strikes and greater than 700 wounded.
The Iranian judiciary mentioned one strike that hit a college within the south killed 108 individuals, though AFP was unable to entry the location to confirm the toll or the circumstances surrounding the incident.
The UAE reported one civilian lifeless and injury from missiles in Dubai and Abu Dhabi, as blasts from Tehran’s retaliatory salvo and air defences intercepting it additionally echoed over Israel, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Qatar, Jordan and Kuwait.
Iranian International Minister Abbas Araghchi had earlier informed NBC Information that Mr. Khamenei was alive “so far as I do know”, including that “all high-ranking officers are alive”.
Printed – March 01, 2026 05:10 am IST