Iran’s new supreme leader was injured in the first wave of U.S.-Israeli attacks on Iran, according to officials from both sides of the conflict.
Mojtaba Khamenei, 56, reportedly suffered injuries to his legs on Feb. 28, more than a week before Iranian state media announced his ascension to supreme leader, according to a Wednesday report by the New York Times. Khamenei succeeded his father, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who was killed on the first day of the war.
The injury to the younger Khamenei is thought to be one reason he has not been seen in public or on video since taking power earlier this month.
Three Iranian officials told the Times that despite his injuries, Khamenei remained alert and was at a secure location with limited communication.
Members of the new supreme leader’s immediate family were killed in Trump’s unauthorized joint operation with Israel.
Khamenei’s wife, mother, and son were killed during the same attack that slammed the Iranian leadership compound, as was his father, the late Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
Despite staying out of the public eye since, images of the new supreme leader have spread throughout Tehran. Some in the country have organized ceremonies to pledge allegiance to the new leader.
This comes as the country’s state news agency, IRNA, has referred to Khamenei as “the wounded war veteran,” according to the Times.
Even before the injury, however, Khamenei maintained a low profile. Reports reveal that he rarely gave speeches and has never held a formal post within Iran’s government.
Now, as supreme leader, Khamenei is stepping into a role of dual authority, serving not only as the top political figure, but also the top religious voice in a nation of 93 million people.
The U.S. and Israel are weighing their response to Khamenei’s rise. Trump said this week that he was “not happy” with the selection of the new supreme leader, which he earlier called “unacceptable.” Trump did not definitively say whether American forces were trying to kill him or not.
Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz has said any successor to the slain Ayatollah Ali Khamenei would be an “unequivocal target for elimination.”
With the younger Khamenei helming Iran, few details reveal his priorities or objectives. He is known to have a close relationship with the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, the hard-line fighting force that dominates the Iranian state.
According to the New York Times, Khamenei joined the IRGC in the 1980s after graduating from high school.
