Netanyahu claims signs indicate Iranian supreme leader killed in Israeli-US strikes

WASHINGTON

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu claimed Saturday that there were signs indicating that Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei may have been killed in Israeli-US strikes targeting his residence in Tehran.

"This morning, in a powerful surprise attack, we destroyed the compound of the tyrant Khamenei," Netanyahu said in a video statement, without providing evidence. “There are many signs that this tyrant is no longer.”

Netanyahu said senior Iranian figures had been “eliminated” in the strikes, including in the country’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and its nuclear program.

“We will continue. In the next few days, we will hit thousands more targets of the terror regime,” said the Israeli premier.

The US has long demanded that Iran give up its nuclear program, but Tehran has argued its program is for civilian purposes only.

In his statement, Netanyahu also urged Iranians to “go to the streets to … topple this regime.”

The US and Israel launched a joint attack on Iran early Saturday morning, claiming it was meant to remove “threats” posed by the Iranian “regime.”

In response, Iran targeted Israel and the US bases in the region with missiles and drones.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said Saturday that Iran’s strikes on US military bases in the Middle East “do not target specific countries but are limited to military sites.”