{"id":42172,"date":"2026-02-28T21:04:28","date_gmt":"2026-02-28T21:04:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ipp-news.com\/?p=42172"},"modified":"2026-02-28T21:04:28","modified_gmt":"2026-02-28T21:04:28","slug":"iran-says-khamenei-safe-and-sound-enemy-resorting-to-mental-warfare-as-israel-claims-death","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ipp-news.com\/?p=42172","title":{"rendered":"Iran says Khamenei ‘safe and sound’, ‘enemy resorting to mental warfare’ as Israel claims death"},"content":{"rendered":"
Iranian authorities said on Saturday that Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was “safe and sound” and called on the people to remain vigilant and not be swayed by what they described as the enemy\u2019s \u201cmental warfare\u201d after reports that he was allegedly killed in an Israeli air strike on Saturday.<\/p>\n

Iranian state media cited the head of public relations at the supreme leader’s office as saying: \u201cThe enemy is resorting to mental warfare, all should be aware.\u201d<\/p>\n

Earlier, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said there were growing signs that Khamenei was \u201cgone\u201d, as a senior Israeli official claimed the supreme leader\u2019s body had been found following an Israeli strike on his compound.<\/p>\n

\u05e9\u05d1\u05d5\u05e2 \u05d8\u05d5\u05d1, \u05d0\u05d7\u05d9\u05d9 \u05d5\u05d0\u05d7\u05d9\u05d5\u05ea\u05d9\u05d9, \u05d0\u05d6\u05e8\u05d7\u05d9 \u05d9\u05e9\u05e8\u05d0\u05dc.<\/p>\n

\u05d4\u05d1\u05d5\u05e7\u05e8 \u05d9\u05e6\u05d0\u05e0\u05d5, \u05d9\u05e9\u05e8\u05d0\u05dc \u05d5\u05d0\u05e8\u05d4\u05f4\u05d1, \u05dc\u05de\u05d1\u05e6\u05e2 \u05de\u05e9\u05d5\u05dc\u05d1 \u05dc\u05d4\u05e1\u05e8\u05ea \u05d4\u05d0\u05d9\u05d5\u05dd \u05d4\u05e7\u05d9\u05d5\u05de\u05d9 \u05e2\u05dc \u05d9\u05e9\u05e8\u05d0\u05dc \u05de\u05e6\u05d3 \u05de\u05e9\u05d8\u05e8 \u05d4\u05d0\u05d9\u05d9\u05ea\u05d5\u05dc\u05d5\u05ea \u05d1\u05d0\u05d9\u05e8\u05d0\u05df.<\/p>\n

\u05d0\u05de\u05e8\u05ea\u05d9 \u05dc\u05db\u05dd: \u05d4\u05de\u05d1\u05e6\u05e2 \u05d9\u05d9\u05de\u05e9\u05da \u05db\u05db\u05dc \u05d4\u05d3\u05e8\u05d5\u05e9, \u05d5\u05e0\u05d3\u05e8\u05e9 \u05d2\u05dd \u05d0\u05d5\u05e8\u05da \u05e8\u05d5\u05d7.<\/p>\n

\u05d0\u05e0\u05d9 \u05de\u05d5\u05d3\u05d4 \u05dc\u05d9\u05d3\u05d9\u05d3\u05d9, \u05d4\u05e0\u05e9\u05d9\u05d0 \u05d3\u05d5\u05e0\u05dc\u05d3 \u05d8\u05e8\u05d0\u05de\u05e4, \u05e2\u05dc \u05de\u05e0\u05d4\u05d9\u05d2\u05d5\u05ea\u05d5. \u05e9\u05d5\u05d7\u05d7\u05ea\u05d9 \u05d0\u05d9\u05ea\u05d5 \u05e9\u05d5\u05d1 \u05d4\u05d1\u05d5\u05e7\u05e8 \u05d5\u05d0\u05e0\u05d9 \u05de\u05d1\u05e8\u05da \u05e2\u05dc \u05e9\u05d9\u05ea\u05d5\u05e3\u2026 pic.twitter.com\/9u0Hm9Vmng
\n\u2014 Benjamin Netanyahu – \u05d1\u05e0\u05d9\u05de\u05d9\u05df \u05e0\u05ea\u05e0\u05d9\u05d4\u05d5 (@netanyahu) February 28, 2026<\/p>\n

\u201cThis morning we destroyed the compound of the tyrant Khamenei,\u201d Netanyahu said in a video statement. \u201cThere are many signs that this tyrant is no longer. This morning we eliminated senior officials in the ayatollahs\u2019 regime, Revolutionary Guards commanders, senior figures in the nuclear programme \u2014 and we will continue. In the next few days, we will hit thousands more targets of the terror regime.\u201d<\/p>\n

Netanyahu said Revolutionary Guards commanders and senior nuclear officials were killed while also calling on Iranian citizens to \u201cflood the streets and finish the job\u201d.<\/p>\n

Read: Iran targets US bases in Gulf after American, Israeli strikes kill 201, injure 747<\/p>\n

Separately, a senior Israeli official told Reuters that Khamenei was dead and his body had been found.<\/p>\n

Israel\u2019s military said its pilots had hit hundreds of targets across Iran, including strategic defence systems previously damaged in strikes last year. It said three sites where leaders had been meeting were struck simultaneously, and several senior figures were killed.<\/p>\n

A Fox News reporter also said, citing a US official, that the government believed Khamenei and five to 10 top Iranian leaders were killed in an initial Israeli strike.<\/p>\n

Sky News reported that when questioned by\u00a0NBC News if he had\u00a0had the reports confirmed or thought Khamenei was dead, Trump said: “I don’t want to comment on that, but the rumour is, and the word is, that he has been killed.”<\/p>\n

When asked how and when he would\u00a0get confirmation about the reported death, Trump replied: “I’ve spoken to a lot of people, beyond, and we feel certain, we feel,\u00a0we feel that that is a correct story.”<\/p>\n

Satellite images reviewed by Reuters show damage to Khamenei\u2019s Tehran compound.<\/p>\n

A satellite image shows black smoke rising and heavy damage at Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei’s compound, following strikes by the United States and Israel against Iran, in Tehran, Iran, February 28, 2026. Photo: Reuters<\/p>\n

However, a spokesman for Iran’s foreign ministry told Sky News that the supreme leader and the Iranian president, Masoud Pezeshkian, were both alive and well.<\/p>\n

“They are all safe and sound,” Esmail Baghaei said.<\/p>\n

Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmail Baghaei says in an interview with Sky’s @MarkAustinTV that the country’s leadership is ‘safe and sound’.<\/p>\n

\ud83d\udd17 https:\/\/t.co\/ABp9zYr8oo pic.twitter.com\/ydeH72t5lS
\n\u2014 Sky News (@SkyNews) February 28, 2026<\/p>\n

Iranian news agencies Tasnim and Mehr reported that the supreme leader was “steadfast and firm in commanding the field”.<\/p>\n

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi also earlier refuted reports of Khamenei\u2019s death. In an interview with NBC News, he said the supreme leader was still alive \u201cas far as I know\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u201cAlmost all officials are safe and sound and alive. We may have lost one or two commanders, but that is not a big problem,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n

When asked about US President Donald Trump\u2019s pre-recorded remarks after the attacks, Araghchi dismissed efforts at regime change as \u201cmission impossible\u201d.<\/p>\n

Separately, a source with knowledge of the matter said Khamenei had been transferred in advance to a secure location outside Tehran, but Reuters could not immediately verify his status, as satellite images showed significant damage to his Tehran compound.<\/p>\n

Khamenei, 86, has ruled Iran since 1989. As supreme leader, he holds ultimate authority over all branches of government, the military and the judiciary in the Islamic republic.<\/p>\n

Also Read: Death toll rises to 85 in Israeli strike on girls\u2019 school in southern Iran<\/p>\n

Over almost four decades, Khamenei built a regional power to rival the states across the Gulf while promoting nuclear technology that unnerved the surrounding region.<\/p>\n

But Saturday’s strikes on Iran come amid a cascade of crises.<\/p>\n

Khamenei was forced into hiding last June by strikes that killed several close associates and Revolutionary Guard commanders. The June 2025 strikes by Israel and the US smashed prized nuclear and missile facilities.<\/p>\n

Huge protests in January by an embittered population toiling under sanctions were crushed at a cost of thousands of lives.<\/p>\n

And ever since the Tehran-backed Hamas attacked Israel on October 7, 2023, Khamenei’s regional influence has been weakening.<\/p><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Iranian authorities said on Saturday that Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was “safe and sound” and called on the people to remain vigilant and not be swayed by what they described as the enemy\u2019s \u201cmental warfare\u201d after reports that he was allegedly killed in an Israeli air strike on Saturday. Iranian state media cited the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-42172","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-english-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/ipp-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/42172","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/ipp-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/ipp-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ipp-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ipp-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=42172"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/ipp-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/42172\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/ipp-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=42172"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ipp-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=42172"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ipp-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=42172"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}