Iran’s new Supreme Leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, has remained out of public view for more than a month after taking power in the aftermath of the U.S.-Israeli strike that killed his father, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, and a Reuters report has now intensified speculation over whether serious injuries are the reason for his absence. Reuters reported on Saturday that, according to three sources close to his inner circle, Mojtaba Khamenei suffered severe wounds in the strike, including major injuries to one or both legs and facial wounds that left him disfigured.
The report says Khamenei is nevertheless still able to take part in state affairs and hold meetings with senior officials by videoconference, suggesting that while his condition may limit public appearances, it has not fully removed him from decision-making. Reuters said there have been no public images, television appearances or audio recordings of him since he was formally appointed Supreme Leader on March 8, a silence that has fuelled intense online speculation inside and outside Iran.
One explanation widely discussed is security. Any public appearance by Iran’s new leader could reveal his location at a time when Tehran still fears further U.S. or Israeli action. But the Reuters account points to health as an additional and possibly decisive factor, especially if the claimed facial and leg injuries are as serious as described. Reuters also noted that it could not independently verify the information from its three sources, making the report significant but not conclusive.
Earlier reporting had already pointed in the same direction. Anadolu reported on March 11 that a son of Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian publicly denied reports that Mojtaba Khamenei had been injured, after the New York Times had said he was hurt in the legs during the opening phase of the war. U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth also said in a March 13 Pentagon briefing that Iran’s new leader was wounded and “likely disfigured,” according to an official transcript of his remarks.
If the Reuters report is accurate, it raises fresh questions about how firmly Mojtaba Khamenei controls the system he inherited. Reuters said analysts already see the Revolutionary Guards as unusually influential in strategic matters during this transition, in part because Mojtaba lacks the personal authority his father built over decades. His physical condition, if badly compromised, could deepen that perception and make Iran’s leadership appear more opaque at a moment of war, diplomacy and internal uncertainty.
