Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian on Monday said Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei is "completely healthy", after reports claimed the Iranian leader was
in an "extremely critical condition". Pezeshkian said he had held a seven- to eight-hour meeting with Khamenei and that they had discussed a range of issues. "From the aspect of health, he is completely healthy," Pezeshkian said. "I mean, someone who can sit and debate with us for seven, eight hours cannot have any health problems." He described the meeting as "good", saying they had "talked about everything". "We talked about all the problems, we shared our concerns," he said. Khamenei became Iran's Supreme Leader after his father, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, was killed in joint US-Israeli strikes on 28 February, according to the account provided. His comments come after reports in Israeli media and elsewhere claimed that the new Supreme Leader was in an "extremely critical condition". Iran's semi-official Mehr News agency also released an undated video on Saturday showing Khamenei apparently in good health. In the footage, he is seen sitting with several men and speaking to them as they listen. It is not known when the video was recorded.
The authenticity of the footage, or whether the person shown is Khamenei, could not be independently verified. IranWire, citing sources close to President Pezeshkian's administration, also reported that rumours about Khamenei's health were circulating at the highest levels of the Iranian government.
The Jerusalem Post quoted a source as saying: "We would not be surprised if we heard news of his martyrdom soon."
That claim has not been independently verified.
Earlier reports said Khamenei had been injured and potentially disfigured in the same strikes that killed his father, and was receiving treatment.
He has not appeared publicly since the attack and his subsequent appointment as Supreme Leader, including at his father's funeral last month, according to the reports. He has reportedly remained in contact with senior officials through a network of intermediaries, partly to avoid being targeted.
US President Donald Trump also claimed last month that the Iranian leader was "90 per cent gone". In a widely circulated clip, Trump was heard saying: "The son is 90% gone."
Khamenei has continued to issue written statements, which have periodically been read out on Iranian state television.
The video released by Mehr News was widely shared on social media. Some users claimed it was old.
Jason Brodsky, policy director at United Against Nuclear Iran, wrote on X that the footage was "old, from before the war" and had first circulated in March.
Pezeshkian's latest comments are the strongest public assurance so far from a senior Iranian official about Khamenei's health.
