Mojtaba Khamenei dead? Iran Supreme Leader’s portrait on mural depicting slain leader Ayatollah Khamenei and other senior figures creates panic; what exactly happened?
Speculations about the death of Iran’s new supreme leader Mojtaba Khamenei have resurfaced after his portrait on a mural depicting top figures killed in the US-Israeli strikes, including former Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, was unveiled by the Islamic Republic on Saturday.
Is Mojtaba Khamenei dead?
The artwork, which was unveiled at a public event attended by top Iranian officials in Mashhad on Saturday, depicted a portrait of Mojtaba Khamenei alongside his father, Ali Khamenei, and other senior leaders killed in US-Israeli attacks.
Visuals of the mural have surfaced on social media platforms, raising questions whether Mojtaba’s depiction on the artwork is a mistake, or an indirect acknowledgment of his demise by Tehran.
Iranian authorities or the state media have not responded to speculations raised by the depiction of Mojtaba Khamenei on the mural.
Human chain, handwritten notes; how Mojtaba Khamenei governs Iran?
This comes amid a media report claiming that Mojtaba Khamenei, who has not appeared in public since the February 28 US-Israeli attack that assassinated his father, wife, child and other family members, is passing commands via a trusted “human chain” to avoid being tracked by the United States and Israel.
According to a New York Times report citing a senior Iranian official, Mojtaba was”gravely” injured in the strikes but remains “mentally sharp and engaged”, adding that the Supreme Leader has not appeared in public because “he does not want to appear vulnerable or sound weak in his first public address.”
The report claimed that Khamenei, 51, sustained grave injuries in the February 28 attack that “damaged his face” and left him requiring “plastic surgery.”
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Why top IRGC leaders don’t visit Mojtaba Khamenei?
As per the NYT report, unprecedented security protocols have been put in place to protect the new Supreme Leader, and even senior commanders of the Revolutionary Guards Corp and high-ranking government officials refrain from visiting him, fearing that Israel could “trace his location” through their movements and orchestrate an assassination.
This has prompted Iran to rely on a completely manual communication system for contacting Mojtaba Khamenei. Messages intended for the leader are “handwritten, sealed in envelopes and passed on via a human chain” of trusted couriers.
The messengers reportedly navigate highways and rural back roads on motorcycles and in cars to reach his “hide-out,” with his responses following the same secure circuit, it said.
Where is Mojtaba Khamenei?
The reports come amid speculations about the whereabouts and health of Mojtaba Khamenei, as he has not appeared in public since the February 28 strike, and his subsequent election as Iran’s new Supreme Leader on March 8.
No photo, video or audio recording of Mojtaba has surfaced since he assumed office, though he has issued a few written statements which have been read out by presenters on Iranian state TV.