Iran’s Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei “Fully Healthy” and Running the Country, Says IRGC Representative

A senior representative of Iran’s Supreme Leader has said Mojtaba Khamenei is in full health and personally steering the country. The statement comes at a time when he has not appeared in public for months.

What was said
According to most reliable sources, Abdollah Haji Sadeghi, the Supreme Leader’s representative in the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), said Mojtaba Khamenei is leading Iran and is completely fit. Sadeghi said the leader is staying out of public view because of the war but is running affairs from behind the scenes. He added that Mojtaba warned of a response “like never before” if the enemy shows fresh aggression. The report says Mojtaba is kept at a highly secret, secure location, and that US and Israeli intelligence services have so far been unable to find him.

Background
The war began on February 28, when US-Israeli strikes hit Iran. Ali Khamenei was killed in those strikes, and Mojtaba succeeded him on March 8. Iran’s Assembly of Experts selected him, and since then he has only issued written messages. The Patrika report says the war is nearing eight months. Attacks are currently paused, but tension remains and there is no permanent end to the conflict. 

Persistent health questions
Doubts about his condition have continued. Reports have said he suffered severe leg and facial injuries in the February 28 strike on his father’s compound. An official had earlier described only a minor leg injury. US President Donald Trump has said it is unclear whether he is alive, and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth claimed he was wounded. 

Iranian officials have pushed back repeatedly. President Masoud Pezeshkian, himself a physician, said last month that he had met the leader about a month earlier and found him “completely” healthy. The Supreme Leader’s mother-in-law has also claimed she saw him in complete health on the night of his father’s burial. 

Proof-of-life debate
In August, the semi-official Mehr news agency released an undated video that appeared to show him in good health. It did not settle the matter. A separate clip claimed to show a first public appearance, but a fact-check found it had been published online before the event it was linked to. Iranian officials say he joins meetings with senior officials by audio conference and is involved in major decisions, including the war and negotiations with Washington. There has been no recent independently verified public appearance, so his present condition cannot be independently established. 

Why it matters
The leader’s visibility is central to Iran’s stability while the conflict remains unresolved. Tehran’s insistence that he is healthy and in command contrasts with unverified claims from US and Israeli sources, and neither side has produced independently confirmed evidence. His last official statement, the Sadeghi remarks and the officials’ accounts all rely on Iranian state channels or secondhand claims.

BREAKING: Iran’s Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei is in good health and continues to exercise leadership, according to his IRGC representative, Abdollah Haji Sadeghi. He warned Iran would deliver an “unprecedented blow” if the enemy launches new aggression.

— The Strait Report (@StraitReport) October 23, 2026