New Delhi: Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei, Iran’s new supreme leader, is incapacitated and receiving medical treatment in the holy city of Qom, The Times UK
reported, citing an intelligence assessment.
Mojtaba was seriously wounded in US-Israeli strikes that killed his father, Ali Khamenei. Citing a diplomatic memo, The Times reported that the 56-year-old cleric was unconscious and being treated for a “severe” medical condition.
This is for the first time that the location of Iran’s supreme leader has been disclosed. The central city of Qom is located around 140 kilometres south of Tehran and is believed to be a sacred place in Shia Islam, often regarded as the religious capital of the Islamic Republic.
“Mojtaba Khamenei is being treated in Qom in a severe condition, unable to be involved in any decision-making by the regime,” the memo, which is believed to be based on American and Israeli intelligence that was shared with Gulf allies, suggested.
Information about the Mojtaba’s whereabouts was reportedly known to US and Israeli intelligence agencies for some time but had not been revealed publicly until now.
‘Elder Khamenei’s body being prepared for burial in Qom’
Since the war broke out in West Asia, Mojtaba has not appeared publicly; messages attributed to him have been run by the Iranian state media. On Monday, Iran also released an AI-generated video of the leader walking into a war room and taking look at a map of Israel’s nuclear power plant in Dimona.
The Times report also noted that the elder Khamenei’s body was being prepared for burial in Qom. US and Israeli spy agencies reportedly have information about preparation of “laying the groundworks needed to build a large mausoleum in Qom” for “more than one grave”. This indicates that other family members could be buried with the late supreme leader.
The Times report said that Mojtaba could himself be buried in the mausoleum, which suggests that the new Iranian Supreme Leader’s condition could be serious.
Trump’s ultimatum
The report comes soon after US President Donald Trump issued an ultimatum to Iran to make a deal before Tuesday, 8:00 P.M ET. He warned that there’ll be “no bridges, no power plants” after that.
Trump said: “This is a critical period… They asked for an extension of seven days; I gave them 10 days… They have till tomorrow. Now we will see what happens… A lot of people are affected by this. We are giving them until tomorrow, 8 o’clock, Eastern Time. After that, they are going to have no bridges. They are going to have no power plants. Stone ages.”
He added: “I think it is going fine, but we will have to see. You have to understand, we have been dealing with these people for 47 years. I’m standing here with a much more powerful Iran than a month ago, not anymore. Right now, they are decapitated.”
