- Mansoureh Khojasteh Bagherzadeh, wife of Ali Khamenei, is alive but seriously injured
- Initial reports of her death were due to misinterpreted injury information from strikes
- Ali Khamenei was assassinated in US-Israeli airstrikes targeting Tehran military sites
Mansoureh Khojasteh Bagherzadeh, the wife of former Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, is alive, Iranian state media has claimed. This comes after earlier reports claimed she was assassinated alongside her husband and other top officials in joint US-Israeli strikes on Tehran.
Bagherzadeh survived the attacks but was seriously injured, Iran's Fars News Agency clarified on Thursday. The outlet said previous claims about her death were incorrect.
Several Iranian media outlets initially reported that Bagherzadeh died from injuries sustained in the strikes, with Tasnim News Agency saying she was in a coma. Fars News Agency later said they were based on misinterpreted early injury reports.
Questions about her were raised earlier on Thursday after Iran's new Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei released his first public statement without mentioning his mother's death.
Bagherzadeh was born in Mashhad into a Shia family. She married Ali Khamenei in 1964 at the age of 17. The couple had six children. In past remarks, Khamenei credited his wife's support during years of political struggle, including periods of imprisonment and political uncertainty.
Ali Khamenei, 86, was assassinated after a coordinated airstrike on his compound in Tehran by the US and Israel. Iran has since fired retaliatory missiles at US and Israeli bases.
Khamenei had led Iran since 1989 after succeeding Ruhollah Khomeini.
“Your departure has left a deep wound in hearts… Many people did not recognise your true value,” Mojtaba Khamenei said of his father in his first written message after becoming Iran's Supreme Leader. “Perhaps years will pass before all the veils are lifted.”
He also said he saw the body of his father after the airstrikes that killed him. In the statement, he said that his father's hand was “clenched in a fist,” which he described as a final sign of resistance.
Officials have said Israeli and US strikes targeted several strategic locations, including ballistic missile facilities, naval assets and other military infrastructure. Iran also claimed that the Natanz nuclear enrichment site was targeted.
