Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who led Iran for more than three decades and shaped the country’s political and military path, was killed at the age of 86, said US President Donald Trump. Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, was killed in Israeli attacks carried out with US support on Saturday. Trump announced Khamenei’s death on social media. Khamenei was one of the longest-serving leaders in the Middle East. He became Supreme Leader in 1989 at the age of 50 and remained in power until his death on February 28, 2026.
Early life and rise to power
Khamenei was born in July 1939 in the city of Mashhad in northeastern Iran. He grew up in a religious family and studied in a theological school. As a young cleric, he strongly opposed Iran’s US.-backed ruler at the time, Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi. Because of his political activism, he was arrested several times.
During the Islamic Revolution of 1979, Khamenei stood close to Ruhollah Khomeini, the senior cleric who led the revolution and became Iran’s first Supreme Leader. After Khomeini’s death in 1989, Khamenei was chosen to take his place. Before becoming Supreme Leader, Khamenei served as Iran’s president.
Over time, he tightened his control over politics, the military, and the courts. Critics said Iran became more like a military dictatorship under his rule.
Nuclear talks and growing tensions
In 2013, Khamenei approved secret talks with the United States about Iran’s nuclear program. These talks led to the 2015 nuclear agreement, formally known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action.
However, Khamenei was said to deeply distrust the United States. During his first term, Trump withdrew the US from the deal. After that, Iran increased its nuclear enrichment, bringing it closer to the ability to build a nuclear weapon, according to reports.
In 2025, when Trump tried to reopen talks for a new deal, negotiations moved slowly. That same year, Israel carried out strikes on Iran’s nuclear facilities, leading to days of missile exchanges between the two countries. On June 21, 2025, the United States launched major airstrikes on three of Iran’s nuclear sites. Trump said the facilities were “completely and totally obliterated.”
Regional conflicts
Khamenei’s support for armed groups across the Middle East also shaped his legacy. Iran backed Hamas, which carried out a deadly attack on Israel on October 7, 2023. The attack led to a wider regional conflict. Soon after, Hezbollah, another Iran-backed group, began firing rockets into Israel. The conflict that followed weakened Hezbollah’s leadership, including its top leader, Hassan Nasrallah.
These growing tensions and Iran’s role in regional conflicts eventually led to direct strikes on Iranian soil, culminating in the attack that killed Khamenei.
