March 01, 2026 : Iranian state media confirmed early today that Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has been killed following coordinated airstrikes by the United States and Israel on military and government targets across Iran. Iranian officials also say a 40-day period of national mourning has been declared.

The strikes reportedly hit a high-level defense council meeting in Tehran. Iran’s chief of army staff, Defense Minister General Aziz Nasirzadeh, and other senior military leaders, including the head of the Revolutionary Guard’s ground forces, were reported killed alongside Khamenei. Unofficial accounts suggest around 40 Iranian officials died in the initial assault, with wider state media reporting at least 200 dead and more than 700 wounded in multiple strikes.

In response to the attacks, Iran has carried out missile and drone strikes across the Gulf region, with explosions reported in cities including Dubai, Doha, Bahrain, and Kuwait, many near U.S. military facilities or allied installations.

U.S. President Donald Trump called Khamenei’s death a significant moment and said that precision bombing would continue into the coming week as necessary. Trump described the event as an opportunity for the Iranian people to “take back their country.”

Tensions in the Middle East have been escalating for weeks amid stalled nuclear negotiations and a buildup of U.S. naval forces in the region. Iran’s leadership vacuum and mounting reprisals have raised concerns of a broader conflict involving regional partners.