Mojtaba Khamenei in coma? The Sun report claims Iran's new supreme leader lost leg in airstrikes

Multiple accounts have emerged regarding the injuries suffered by the new leader during the attack.

• Mojtaba Khamenei issued his first public message as Iran's leader
• No recent visuals of Khamenei, sparking health rumours
• Khamenei vows revenge and threatens to block the Strait of Hormuz

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Iran’s newly elevated supreme leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, issued his first public message following the outbreak of war with the United States and Israel, but the remarks did little to end speculation about his health.

The statement was broadcast on Iranian state television and read aloud by a news anchor rather than delivered directly by the leader himself. No video, audio recording, or newly released image accompanied the announcement, raising fresh questions about his condition.

According to Iranian media, the statement was written by Khamenei personally. However, the decision not to show him on camera came as reports circulated that he had been wounded during the first wave of US-Israeli airstrikes on February 28.

Those strikes reportedly killed his father, Iran’s longtime supreme leader Ali Khamenei, along with other senior officials and members of the family.

Conflicting reports about his medical condition

Multiple accounts have emerged regarding the injuries suffered by the new leader during the attack.

Iranian state television referred to him as the “Jaanbaz of Ramadan,” a term commonly used in the country for someone who has been wounded while serving the nation.

Earlier reporting from Reuters suggested that Khamenei was only “lightly injured.” A separate report by CNN claimed he had sustained a fractured foot, a bruise around his left eye and minor facial lacerations.

However, a far more dramatic account from the British tabloid The Sun alleged that the 56-year-old leader is currently in a coma after losing at least one leg in the strike. The report claimed he also suffered serious internal injuries affecting his liver or stomach.

According to the publication, Khamenei is being treated under heavy security at Sina University Hospital in Tehran’s historic district, where parts of the facility were reportedly sealed off.

The Sun cited unnamed sources who said one of his legs had been amputated and that he was under intensive care.

It also reported that Mohammad Reza Zafarghandi, Iran’s health minister and a leading trauma surgeon, was overseeing his treatment.

Iranian authorities have not publicly confirmed those claims.

Statement emphasises revenge and continued confrontation

In his first message since becoming supreme leader, Khamenei adopted a combative tone toward Iran’s adversaries.

“A limited amount of this revenge has so far taken concrete form, but until it is fully achieved, this case will remain among our priorities,” the statement said.

“We will seek compensation from the enemy, and if they refuse, we will take as much of their property as we determine, and if that is not possible, we will destroy the same amount of his property,” it added.

The remarks signaled that Iran intends to continue confronting the United States and Israel in the ongoing conflict.

The new leader also highlighted a deadly attack on a school in Minab in southern Iran, which Iranian authorities say killed 150 people. He described the incident as a “crime the enemy deliberately committed.”

Threats involving the Strait of Hormuz

The statement also referenced potential economic pressure tactics that Iran could employ during the conflict.

Khamenei spoke about the possibility of using “the lever of blocking the Strait of Hormuz,” a critical shipping route through which roughly a fifth of the world’s oil supply travels.

He also warned that Iran could open additional fronts in the conflict if hostilities continued.

“Studies have also been carried out on opening other fronts in which the enemy has little experience and in which it will be extremely vulnerable,” he said.

Those fronts, he added, would be activated if the war escalated further.

Message to neighbouring countries

In the address, Khamenei also spoke about Iran’s relations with neighboring states.

He noted that Iran shares land or sea borders with about fifteen countries and said the country had historically sought “warm and constructive relations” with its neighbors.

At the same time, he urged countries in the region to close American military installations on their territory.

“These countries must determine their stance regarding those who have invaded our dear homeland and killed our people,” he said, adding that “the claim of establishing security and peace by America was nothing more than a lie.”

Personal losses highlighted in statement

Khamenei also spoke about the personal losses he suffered in the strike that killed his father.

He described his late father as a “shining treasure and distinguished figure in history,” recalling that he saw the body after the attack.

The statement described the corpse as “a mountain of steadfastness” with the fist of his father’s functioning hand clenched in defiance.

In addition to his father, Khamenei said the strike also killed his wife, his sister, her child and his brother-in-law.

However, the statement did not mention his mother, despite earlier reports suggesting she had also died in the attack. Iran’s Fars news agency later said those reports were incorrect and that she was still alive.

Appointment and political backing

Senior Iranian sources have indicated that the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps played a key role in backing Khamenei’s rapid elevation to the country’s highest political and religious position.

Already one of the most powerful institutions in Iran’s political system, the IRGC has reportedly gained even greater influence since the start of the war.

According to the statement, Khamenei himself said he learned of his appointment by the Assembly of Experts at the same time as the public.

He said he discovered the decision “on television through the state broadcaster.”

Speculation continues about 'ghost ayatollah'

Because the message was delivered without any visual appearance from Khamenei, speculation about his condition has continued.

Rumours circulating online have described Iran as potentially being led by a “Ghost Ayatollah,” suggesting the country’s new supreme leader may be unable to appear publicly due to injuries.

Iranian state media insists that the statement was written personally by Khamenei, but officials have not provided clear details about his current whereabouts or health.