Iran’s tyrannical Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei was killed Saturday in an unprecedented, joint military attack by the US and Israel called Operation Epic Fury — which President Trump said would give Iranians their “greatest chance” to “take back the country.”
“Khamenei, one of the most evil people in History, is dead,” Trump declared on his Truth Social about 15 hours after the start of the onslaught. “This is not only Justice for the people of Iran, but for all Great Americans, and those people from many Countries throughout the World, that have been killed or mutilated by Khamenei and his gang of bloodthirsty THUGS.”
The tyrant’s daughter, grandchild, daughter-in-law and son-in-law were also killed in the joint military attack, according to Iranian state media, though it’s unclear where they died. Israeli officials told Fox News that more than 40 top Iranian security and regime figures were eliminated in the opening strikes this morning, and as many as 10 high-ranking leaders were killed in the initial strike on Khamenei’s fortified compound.
The body of the 86-year-old Khamenei was reportedly recovered in the rubble and a photograph of his corpse was shown to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, a senior Israeli official told Reuters. US officials, including Trump, agree with Israel’s assessment that Khamenei is no longer alive.
“He was unable to avoid our Intelligence and Highly Sophisticated Tracking Systems and, working closely with Israel, there was not a thing he, or the other leaders that have been killed along with him, could do,”
Trump’s post continued. “This is the single greatest chance for the Iranian people to take back their Country.” In an address to his nation, Netanyahu said there were “many signs” Khamenei was dead. Khamenei has ruled Iran since the 1989 death of his predecessor, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, the founder of the Islamic Republic. The attacks follow a massive US military buildup in the Middle East and come after Trump repeatedly warned Tehran that it would face consequences if it didn’t make a deal with the US to scrap its nuclear program.
Trump emphasized that a main objective of the campaign was “to defend the American people by eliminating imminent threats from the Iranian regime.”
“Its menacing activities directly endanger the United States, our troops, our bases overseas and our allies throughout the world. For 47 years, the Iranian regime has chanted ‘Death to America’ and waged an unending campaign of bloodshed and mass murder targeting the United States, our troops and the innocent people in many, many countries,” Trump said in an eight-minute video announcing the strikes Saturday morning. Many regime forces appear to by laying down their arms, Trump said.
“We are hearing that many of their IRGC, Military, and other Security and Police Forces, no longer want to fight, and are looking for Immunity from us,” Trump wrote. “As I said last night, ‘Now they can have Immunity, later they only get Death!’”
The president called on the IRGC and state police to “peacefully merge with the Iranian Patriots, and work together as a unit to bring back the Country to the Greatness”. “That process should soon be starting in that, not only the death of Khamenei but the Country has been, in only one day, very much destroyed and, even, obliterated,” Trump added.
