Netanyahu says many signs Khamenei is ‘no longer alive’ as US-Israel strikes hit Tehran complex

(COMBO) This combination of pictures created on June 18, 2025 shows (L) a handout picture released by the official website of Iran's Supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei giving the yearly address to the nation on the occasion of Nowruz in Tehran on March 20, 2025, and an image grab from a video released by the Israeli Government Press Office (GPO) showing Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announcing the launch of a targeted military operation against Iran in a video statement on June 13, 2025.

Israeli PM Netanyahu claimed Iran’s Supreme Leader Khamenei may have been killed in a US-Israeli strike on his Tehran compound. Iran denied the reports, calling them psychological warfare. Uncertainty over Khamenei’s fate and relatives’ deaths heightens tensions.

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Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Saturday said there were indications that Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei may have been killed in a strike on his compound during the ongoing US Israeli operation.

In a televised statement, Netanyahu described the attack as a decisive blow delivered in the heart of Tehran.

"This morning, in a powerful surprise strike, the compound of the tyrant Ali Khamenei was destroyed in the heart of Tehran... and there are many signs that this tyrant is no longer alive," Netanyahu said.

The Israeli PM said the joint US-Israeli attack on Iran killed senior officials in the Islamic republic and warned that thousands more targets would be struck in the coming days.

"This morning we eliminated senior figures in the ayatollahs' regime -- commanders in the Revolutionary Guards and senior officials in the nuclear programme -- and we will continue," Netanyahu said.

"In the coming days, we will strike thousands of targets of the terror regime," he added.

His remarks came amid reports that the joint US Israeli operation involved the dropping of 30 bombs on Khamenei’s compound. Israel’s Channel 12 network reported that the complex was heavily targeted during the overnight assault. Channel 12 journalist Amit Segal, who is considered close to Netanyahu, said, "Thirty bombs were dropped on the complex. Ali Khamenei was underground, but probably not in his own bunker," without citing a source.

There has been no official confirmation from Iranian authorities regarding Khamenei’s fate. Earlier, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi had dismissed reports of the Supreme Leader’s death as false and part of what he described as psychological warfare, according to NDTV. He said Khamenei was alive and that attempts to spread such claims were aimed at destabilising Iran at a critical moment.

The uncertainty over Khamenei’s status follows reports that members of his family were killed in the same wave of strikes. A member of the Tehran City Council said that Khamenei’s son in law and daughter in law had died in the attack, Reuters reported citing Iran’s Young Journalists Club. Independent verification of the casualties was not immediately possible.

US and Israeli officials have described the broader operation as targeting strategic military infrastructure. However, the reported strike on the Supreme Leader’s compound and claims about his possible death represent a dramatic escalation that could significantly alter the trajectory of the conflict.

With Tehran yet to provide a detailed account, questions over Khamenei’s status and the reported deaths of his relatives are likely to intensify tensions further in an already volatile confrontation.