Iran’s supreme leader in ‘full health’ after injuries in US-Israeli attack during war: Report

Iran’s Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei is in “full health” after sustaining injuries during a joint US-Israeli attack on the office compound of Iran’s leadership on the first day of the war earlier this year, a senior Iranian official.

The remarks marked the first statement detailing the supreme leader’s health condition and what he was faced during the wartime attack.

According to Iran’s Fars News Agency, Mazaher Hosseini, director general of protocol at the office of the supreme leader, said Mojtaba Khamenei suffered injuries during strikes targeting the compound on Feb. 28, when his selection as supreme leader still lay in the future.

Hosseini said he was present at the compound during the attack, adding that several nearby locations were hit, including sites where senior Iranian officials -- including Ali Khamenei​​​​​​​, the then-supreme leader and Mojtaba Khamenei’s father -- were killed, Fars reported late Friday.

Hosseini added that Mojtaba Khamenei was not inside the area where he usually delivered lectures at the time of the strikes, saying the site was later “flattened” in the bombardment.

The official further said that Khamenei’s residence was also targeted, noting that his wife and several others were killed in the attack.

Blast wave

He said Khamenei was knocked to the ground by the blast wave while heading toward the residence and suffered injuries to his kneecap and lower back.

“The back injury has improved during this period, and the kneecap injury will soon heal as well. He is in full health,” Hosseini said, according to Fars.

He also dismissed speculation over injuries to Khamenei’s forehead, saying there was only a “small crack behind the ear” and that it was already treated.

Hosseini concluded that Iran’s adversaries were seeking audio, video, or other material related to Khamenei “to carry out action against him,” adding that he would address the public at an “appropriate time.”

Mojtaba Khamenei was selected supreme leader on March 9 following the killing of his father Ali Khamenei in US-Israeli strikes on Feb. 28. Since taking office, he has communicated only through written statements.

Regional tensions intensified after the US and Israel launched strikes on Iran on Feb. 28, prompting retaliatory attacks by Tehran and disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz, a key route for global oil and gas shipping.

A ceasefire took effect on April 8 through Pakistani mediation, but the first round of talks in Islamabad on April 11 failed to secure a lasting agreement. The truce was later extended by US President Donald Trump without a specified deadline.

Since April 13, the US has enforced a naval blockade targeting Iranian maritime traffic in the strategic waterway.