President Trump said Monday it’s unclear whether Iran’s new supreme leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, is alive.
Khamenei was tapped March 8 to replace his father, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who was killed on the first day of the joint US-Israeli bombing campaign Feb. 28.
“We have not heard from the son,” Trump told reporters. “We don’t know if he’s living.”
Mojtaba Khamenei is believed to have been injured in the strike that killed his father, though reports have varied concerning the extent of his injuries.
Since being named supreme leader, Khamenei has only issued written statements that have been read out by state TV broadcasters.
“[Ali] Khamenei was killed,” the president said. “Khamenei’s son is unavailable. Nobody knows what happened to him. I can say they haven’t seen him there either. Something is going on with him. But regardless, I don’t consider him really the leader, but they do have some leaders left.”
