Dare Babalola
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has stated that there are “many signs” indicating Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei may have been killed in a joint US-Israeli strike on his compound in Tehran.
“This morning, in a powerful surprise strike, the compound of the tyrant Ali Khamenei was destroyed in the heart of Tehran and there are many signs that this tyrant is no longer alive,” Netanyahu said in a televised statement on Saturday.
It was earlier reported that a wave of strikes on Saturday by the United States and Israel against targets in Iranian cities, triggering explosions and columns of smoke in the capital, Tehran.
The attack, part of “Operation Epic Fury,” targeted Khamenei and other senior Iranian officials, with reports of 30 bombs dropped on the compound.
US President Donald Trump said Washington’s goal was “eliminating imminent threats” from Iran, while Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz described the action as a “preventive strike.”
In a video message posted on his social media platform, Trump said, “The United States’ military began major combat operations in Iran.”
He added, “We are going to destroy their missiles and raze their missile industry to the ground. It will be totally, again, obliterated. We’re going to annihilate their navy.”
