MR-Mohit

For the first time since the war began, Iran has publicly acknowledged and detailed the injuries sustained by Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei during the 28 February US-Israeli strikes that killed his father, former Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
Mazaher Hosseini, the head of protocol in the office of the Supreme Leader, said on Friday that Khamenei suffered injuries to his kneecap and lower back, and was struck by a small piece of shrapnel behind his ear during the attack on the Supreme Leader’s compound in central Tehran, according to The Wall Street Journal and Iran International. “During the attack, Khamenei was not in the place where the attack took place. They hit his home, where his wife was killed. He was on his way, on the stairs, when the missile struck there,” Hosseini told supporters in a video shared by Nour News, a media outlet affiliated with Iran’s Supreme National Security Council.
Hosseini insisted the 56-year-old cleric is now “in complete health” and said his absence from public life is purely a security precaution. “The enemy is spreading all manner of rumours and false claims. They want to see him and find him, but people should be patient and not rush. He will speak to you when the time is right,”
A Stark Contrast With International Reports
The official Iranian account stands in sharp contrast to reports from Western media and intelligence officials over the past two months. Reuters reported in April, citing three people familiar with Khamenei’s inner circle, that he suffered severe facial disfigurement and serious wounds to one or both legs. The New York Times reported in late April that he needs a prosthetic for one of his legs, which has been operated on three times, and that he sustained severe burns to his face and lips that will eventually require plastic surgery. Earlier in March, US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth publicly said Khamenei was likely “disfigured”, while Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard told Congress he had “suffered serious wounds”.
Iran has consistently pushed back on such characterisations since the early days of the conflict. Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baqaei said in March that Khamenei was in “good health”, and Iran’s representative to the United Nations in Geneva, Ali Bahraini, attributed his absence from public view solely to “security considerations”.
Behind the Scenes, a Leader Still Steering Strategy
The disclosure came the same day CNN reported, citing multiple US intelligence sources, that Khamenei is believed to be playing a role in shaping Iran’s wartime strategy and its negotiations with Washington aimed at ending the conflict. According to the assessment, Khamenei communicates through trusted couriers and in-person meetings whilst recovering, avoiding electronic communication to protect his location.
Yet US officials remain uncertain about the extent of his actual control. Some analysts within the intelligence community believe other members of Iran’s elite, including Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps commanders and Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, may be using Khamenei’s name to advance their own agendas. One source told CNN there is evidence Khamenei is “fairly removed from the decision-making process and only sporadically accessible”.
More than two months after the strikes, Khamenei has still not appeared on camera or spoken publicly — a silence that continues to fuel speculation about whether Iran’s account of his condition tells the full story.
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