A life and legacy framed by revolution, consolidation of power, enduring global<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Iranian state media reported his death early Sunday following a major joint military operation by the United States and Israel targeting sites in and around Tehran.AFP file<\/p>\n\n\n\n
DUBAI Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Iran\u2019s Supreme Leader who steered the\u00a0Islamic Republic for more than three decades\u00a0through war, sanctions, internal unrest and escalating confrontation with the United States and Israel, has died at the age of 86.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Iranian state media reported his death early Sunday following a major joint\u00a0military operation by the United States\u00a0and Israel targeting sites in and around Tehran.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n US President Donald Trump\u00a0said hours earlier that Khamenei had been killed in the strikes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n According to Iran\u2019s semiofficial Fars news agency, Khamenei\u2019s daughter, son-in-law, a grandchild and a daughter-in-law were also killed in the attack, citing unidentified sources. Iranian authorities declared 40 days of public mourning and a seven-day nationwide holiday.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Khamenei\u2019s death marks the end of an era for the Islamic Republic he inherited from Ruhollah Khomeini in 1989 and reshaped into a tightly controlled theocratic state underpinned by the powerful Revolutionary Guard. His rule spanned the Iran-Iraq War\u2019s aftermath, repeated waves of domestic protest, the rise and fall of regional proxy forces, and a prolonged nuclear standoff with the West.<\/p>\n\n\n\n What follows is the arc of a cleric who rose from revolutionary activist to become the most powerful figure in modern Iranian history.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Born<\/strong>: April 19, 1939, in Mashhad, Iran \u2014 one of Iran\u2019s holiest cities with deep Shiite religious heritage. His father was a cleric, which placed Khamenei early within religious circles.<\/p>\n\n\n\n He began Islamic studies from a young age, eventually moving to Qom, the centre of Shiite scholarship, where he became a student and close associate of Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini \u2014 the spiritual leader of the anti-Shah movement.<\/p>\n\n\n\n During the 1960s and 1970s, Khamenei engaged in anti-Shah political activism, was repeatedly arrested by the Shah\u2019s secret police (SAVAK), and faced both imprisonment and exile. His commitment during this period cemented his revolutionary credentials.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Khamenei played an active role in organising protests and promoting Khomeini\u2019s ideology as the Shah\u2019s rule collapsed. He became a member of the Revolutionary Council that shaped the new Islamic Republic.<\/p>\n\n\n\n After the revolution\u2019s success, he quickly received positions of influence, including roles as deputy defence minister and Friday prayer leader in Tehran \u2014 a position that blended religious authority with political visibility.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In 1981, in the midst of the Iran-Iraq War (1980\u20131988), Khamenei was elected President of Iran, serving two terms until 1989. During this time, he:<\/p>\n\n\n\n Oversaw government operations during a devastating war.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Strengthened ties with the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) \u2014 a military force that would later become central to Iran\u2019s domestic and regional policy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n A bomb attack during his presidency injured him, leaving him with a permanently weakened right arm.<\/p>\n\n\n\n 1989:<\/strong> After Ayatollah Khomeini\u2019s death, Iran\u2019s Assembly of Experts chose Khamenei \u2014 then the sitting president \u2014 as the second Supreme Leader of the Islamic Republic.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The constitution was amended slightly to reduce the religious requirement for the position, allowing Khamenei, who was considered a less senior cleric than Khomeini, to assume it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n As Supreme Leader \u2014 the highest authority in Iran \u2014 he held ultimate control over:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Judicial system<\/p>\n\n\n\n Intelligence services<\/p>\n\n\n\n State media and foreign policy<\/p>\n\n\n\n Key appointments, including judiciary heads, security commanders, and clerical councils.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Domestic & Foreign Policy (1989\u20132026)<\/p>\n\n\n\n Domestic Influence<\/p>\n\n\n\n Suppression of dissent \u2014 from the 1999 student protests to the 2009 Green Movement and the nearly nationwide 2022 \u201cWoman, Life, Freedom\u201d uprising sparked by the death of Mahsa Amini.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Concentration of power in conservative and security institutions, most notably the IRGC, which increasingly dominated politics and the economy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Tight control over elections, media, and public discourse, often limiting reformist movements when they threatened regime stability.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Under his leadership, Iran projected power regionally by backing allied militia and political movements across the Middle East \u2014 including in Iraq, Syria, Lebanon, and Yemen \u2014 often described as the \u201cAxis of Resistance.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Khamenei also championed Iran\u2019s controversial nuclear programme, defending its expansion despite sanctions and global tensions, even while issuing a religious decree (fatwa) against nuclear weapons.<\/p>\n\n\n\n For decades, Khamenei maintained firm authoritarian control over Iran under the banner of defending the revolution. But his legacy was deeply contested \u2014 admired by hardliners for defending sovereignty, yet criticised widely for repression and stagnation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n February 28, 2026<\/strong>: He was killed at age 86 in US and Israeli airstrikes on Tehran \u2014 a dramatic and historic end to over thirty-six years as Iran\u2019s Supreme Leader.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" A life and legacy framed by revolution, consolidation of power, enduring global Iranian state media reported his death<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":209,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"pagelayer_contact_templates":[],"_pagelayer_content":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[3,23],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-208","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-government","category-world"],"featured_image_urls":{"full":["https:\/\/naeemahalketbiview.info\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/image-1.jpeg",480,319,false],"thumbnail":["https:\/\/naeemahalketbiview.info\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/image-1-150x150.jpeg",150,150,true],"medium":["https:\/\/naeemahalketbiview.info\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/image-1-300x199.jpeg",300,199,true],"medium_large":["https:\/\/naeemahalketbiview.info\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/image-1.jpeg",480,319,false],"large":["https:\/\/naeemahalketbiview.info\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/image-1.jpeg",480,319,false],"1536x1536":["https:\/\/naeemahalketbiview.info\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/image-1.jpeg",480,319,false],"2048x2048":["https:\/\/naeemahalketbiview.info\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/image-1.jpeg",480,319,false],"morenews-large":["https:\/\/naeemahalketbiview.info\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/image-1.jpeg",480,319,false],"morenews-medium":["https:\/\/naeemahalketbiview.info\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/image-1.jpeg",480,319,false]},"author_info":{"info":["Naeema"]},"category_info":"GOVERNMENT<\/a> WORLD<\/a>","tag_info":"WORLD","comment_count":"0","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/naeemahalketbiview.info\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/208","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/naeemahalketbiview.info\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/naeemahalketbiview.info\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/naeemahalketbiview.info\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/naeemahalketbiview.info\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=208"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/naeemahalketbiview.info\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/208\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":210,"href":"https:\/\/naeemahalketbiview.info\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/208\/revisions\/210"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/naeemahalketbiview.info\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/209"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/naeemahalketbiview.info\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=208"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/naeemahalketbiview.info\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=208"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/naeemahalketbiview.info\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=208"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}From revolution to supreme leadership<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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Early life & revolutionary roots<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Role in the 1979 Islamic revolution<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Political rise: presidency<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Becoming Supreme Leader<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
The military and IRGC<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Khamenei\u2019s rule was marked by:<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Foreign policy<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Legacy & final years<\/h2>\n\n\n\n