Image Credit: Iranian Leader Press Office/Anadolu via Getty Images 
Summary: Currently, the biggest question is where’s the Ayatollah? Iran state TV teased an imminent speech to address the nation after the major US-Israeli attack, and in the wake of Iran’s retaliation on US regional bases – and the Gulf countries hosting them. There were earlier rumors that Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei was killed, but nothing is verifiable. He could be deep in a hidden underground bunker, at a command post, known only by his closest IRGC associates. There are also unverified reports that members of his own family may have been killed. Meanwhile in the US some Democratic Congressional leaders are demanding an immediate War Powers vote, and condemn the Trump-ordered attack as an unconstitutional war on a foreign nation which has not directly attacked the US. President Trump has in the late afternoon hours posted a message declaring that Khamenei is dead – though it remains that the Iranians have not said this. Instead, adding to the mystery, Khamenei’s X account has posted something ambiguous just after Trump’s statement. Trump has further vowed the bombing will continue:
- US official confirms to Fox that US believes Khamenei and 5-10 top Iranian leaders killed in initial Israeli strike on compound; agree with Israel’s intelligence assessment.
- No U.S. casualties reported, 12 hours after Washington launched Operation Epic Fury alongside Israel, targeting Iran’s security and military infrastructure, CENTCOM says. Al Jazeera reporting over 200 killed in Iran. Likely the death toll will climb.
- AFP: Two Israeli TV networks report photo of Khamenei’s body shown to Trump, Netanyahu
- Israeli ambassador to Washington Yechiel Leiter told U.S. officials that Iran’s supreme leader Ali Khamenei has been killed in the Israeli strike on his compound, a source with knowledge said (Axios).
- Jerusalem Post (unconfirmed): Israeli officials informed Khamenei assassinated in Iran strike, body said to be found in rubble. Iranian authorities themselves have not said this, and an information block/fog of war inside Iran persists.
- Israeli official says Khamenei killed; Trump: Regime really didn’t want a deal
- PressTV: The Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) has announced that it destroyed a sophisticated American radar system stationed in Qatar as part of its retaliatory attacks targeting US bases and assets in the region.
- “I can go long and take over the whole thing, or end it in two or three days and tell the Iranians: ‘See you again in a few years if you start rebuilding [your nuclear and missile programs],” Trump said in a five-minute phone interview from Mar-a-Lago (Axios).
- Trump calls for regime change. Will he commit ground troops to do it? Meanwhile Netanyahu addresses Iranian people, claiming “help has arrived.”
- Iran signals could be ready for de-escalation after regional missile barrage: Tehran indicates it does not want further escalation following retaliatory missile strikes on at least five countries, including Israel. Iranian state TV cancels a long-promised speech by Ayatollah Khamenei. An Israeli official says regime leaders cannot currently locate him. US strikes appear to have continued in waves on Saturday.
- Iran targets US military sites, not US mainland: Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi tells NBC News that Iran is striking US military facilities in the region, not “Americans in their land,” and says Tehran is ready to talk once US-Israeli strikes stop. He states Khamenei is alive “as far as I know” and confirms two commanders were killed but senior leadership remains in place.
- Senior Iranian commanders reported killed: Reuters cites sources saying Defense Minister Amir Nasirzadeh and IRGC commander Mohammed Pakpour were killed in Israeli strikes.
- Israeli strike allegedly hit girls’ elementary school in southern Iran: An airstrike in Minab, Hormozgan province, struck a primary school for girls, killing dozens, according to state media, underscoring the likely mounting civilian toll from the large-scale US-Israeli bombardment of Iran.
- Regional panic and military buildup: Gulf residents rush to stockpile supplies; the UAE reassures the public about reserves. The UK confirms aircraft are supporting US-Israeli operations.
- Operation Epic Fury expands: The US-Israeli campaign continues striking Iranian military infrastructure, senior leaders, and high-value targets across multiple cities. Satellite imagery shows severe damage to Khamenei’s compound in Tehran; his whereabouts remain unclear.
- Trump announced start of “major combat operations”: In an eight-minute address, President Trump says the US is conducting a “massive and ongoing operation” to destroy Iran’s missile capabilities and demands Iranian forces surrender or face “certain death.”
- Iran further threatens regional bases: Iranian Armed Forces spokesman Gen. Abolfazl Shekarchi warns that any regional base used by the US or Israel will be targeted. Reports emerge of Iranian retaliatory strikes across the Middle East.
- Iran launches regional retaliation: Tehran fires missiles at Israel and US-linked assets in Qatar, UAE, Kuwait, Bahrain, Syria, Jordan, and Iraq. Explosions hit Tehran and other Iranian cities. Multiple countries close their airspace.
- Coordinated US-Israel strikes dubbed ‘Operation Epic Fury’: Washington and Tel Aviv launch joint attacks on Iranian targets after months of planning, following failed indirect nuclear talks. Trump frames the operation as eliminating “imminent threats” and calls on Iranians to “take over your government.”
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Update (10:00ET): Will the chaos be contained, after Iran unleashed retaliatory missiles on at least five regional countries, including Israel? Iran is quickly signaling that it’s not willing to escalate this further, hoping for a halt in the US-Israeli operation:
Iran is attacking U.S. military facilities in the Middle East region and not “Americans in their land,” Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said in his exclusive interview with NBC News.
He added that Tehran was interested in de-escalation and ready to talk once the joint U.S.-Israeli strikes end.
Amid rumors that Ayatollah Ali Khamenei could be dead, after direct strikes on his main headquarters in the capital, Araghchi said that he is still alive “as far as I know.”
Araghchi is directly signaling the American side via an exclusive interview with NBC News. He spoke live from Tehran Saturday morning. He acknowledged that “two commanders had died but senior officials in the regime had survived including the head of the judiciary and the parliament speaker.”
“All high ranking officials are alive,” he said. “So everybody is now in its position, and we are handling this situation, and everything is fine.”
Iranian Defense Minister Amir Nasirzadeh and Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps commander Mohammed Pakpour were killed in Israeli strikes, according to two sources briefed on Israel’s military operations and one regional source, cited in Reuters.
As for finding the Ayatollah, he is probably deep in a hidden underground bunker that no one but his closest IRGC advisers know about. Americans need to be reminded that this is a country of over 90 million people and geographically is the size of half the European continent.
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