Ayatollah Ali Khamenei killed in US-Israel strikes as Donald Trump warns of expanding regional war

Key topics:Ayatollah Ali Khamenei killed in US-Israel airstrikesStrait of Hormuz disruption threatens global oil flowsDonald Trump warns of prolonged regional war.Sign up for your early morning brew of the BizNews Insider to keep you up to speed with the content that matters. The newsletter will land in your inbox every morning on weekdays. Register here.Support South Africa's bastion of independent journalism, offering balanced insights on investments, business, and the political economy, by joining BizNews Premium. Register here.If you prefer WhatsApp for updates, sign up to the BizNews channel here..By Arsalan Shahla and Patrick Sykes.Iran’s supreme leader was killed in US–Israeli airstrikes, a seismic development in a conflict that’s spread to half a dozen countries across the Middle East and threatens to disrupt energy flows.President Donald Trump said in a social-media post that Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, “one of the most evil people in history, is dead.” Iran confirmed the news hours later, saying the government will observe 40 days of national mourning for the 86-year-old ruler, who was killed in his office compound.“Heavy and pinpoint bombing, however, will continue, uninterrupted throughout the week or, as long as necessary,” Trump said. On Sunday, there were abundant signs the war is spreading a day after the US and Israel started attacks on Iran, drawing a swift and widespread response from the Islamic Republic. Buildings have been struck in Tel Aviv, missile defenses intercepted incoming Iranian projectiles in Qatar, Bahrain and Kuwait, and there was a hit on Dubai’s main airport, the world’s busiest aviation hub. The Strait of Hormuz, a critical transit for oil and gas linking the Persian Gulf to the open sea, was described by Iran’s Tasnim news agency as being practically shut, with tankers increasingly avoiding the waterway. Oman’s Maritime Security said a small oil tanker was targeted near the strait off its north coast, with four people injured.“No American ship is allowed to enter the Persian Gulf,” Mohsen Rezaei, a member of the Expediency Discernment Council that advises Iran’s supreme leader, told state TV on Sunday.Killing the ruler who dominated the Islamic Republic for more than three decades took the US-Israeli campaign to quash Iran’s regional influence to a new level. Iran President Masoud Pezeshkian vowed “revenge and retribution” for the assassination, calling it a “legitimate right.”Khamenei did not publicly designate a successor, and the Assembly of Experts, the clerical body responsible for selecting the supreme leader, is required to appoint a new one. In the interim, a council comprising the president, the head of the judiciary and a jurist from the Guardian Council assumes the leader’s duties.The council will meet later Sunday, Iran’s national security chief Ali Larijani said.Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu urged Iranians to try to overthrow their government, following a similar call made by Trump shortly after the attacks on Iran began.The military campaign could be a defining moment for the US leader, risking a drawn-out regional war that leads to a surge in energy prices and American casualties ahead of midterm elections in November. Tehran responded to the initial strikes with its heaviest ever missile assault on US allies, and pledged more is to come on Sunday. Nearly all civilian air traffic is closed across the region..Oil has already gained almost 20% this year, largely due to US-Iran tensions. Brent crude increased 2.5% to $72.48 per barrel on Friday, the highest closing price since July. Oil markets are closed for the weekend.The US and Israel started the attack with the aim of “eliminating imminent threats from the Iranian regime,” Trump said in a video posted on his Truth Social platform early Saturday. “When we’re finished, take over your government,” he said, addressing Iranians directly. Saudi Arabia, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait and Bahrain — all of which host US troops — reported Iranian attacks, most of which they seemed to repel. Saudi Arabia said it intercepted Iranian missiles over its capital, Riyadh, and the eastern region, where most of the kingdom’s oil fields are located. On Sunday, the UAE and Saudi Arabia condemned Iran’s assault in blunt terms, suggesting it’s losing support among Gulf Arab states.Anwar Gargash, a senior advisor to the UAE leadership, urged Iran via X to “return to your senses,” warning that the Islamic Republic is now isolated at a critical time. Israel’s military said its fighter jets targeted “approximately 500 objectives,” including aerial defenses and missile launchers, severely degrading Iran’s offensive capability. A total of 1,200 missiles were dropped on Iran over a 24-hour period, Israel’s army said, compared with 330 munitions used in the opening day of the 12-day war last year.US forces successfully defended against hundreds of Iranian missile and drones, Central Command said in a statement, adding there were no reports of US casualties or combat-related injuries.Targets included Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps command and control facilities, Iranian air defenses, missile and drone launch sites and military airfields, according to Centcom. Israel said the force’s commander, Mohammad Pakpour, was killed.Iranian media reported strikes on defensive and civilian sites, including one that killed 85 people at a school in Hormozgan. Several large explosions have been reported in Tehran, the capital. Iranian television reported on Saturday that 201 people were killed and 747 injured in the strikes.Iran’s response outweighed its retaliation to Israeli airstrikes in June — both in scale and speed — as Tehran treats the conflict as an existential threat to the government born out of the Islamic Revolution in 1979.OPEC+ will consider the option of a larger oil supply increase when key members meet later Sunday, after the Israeli strikes, according to a delegate. The group led by Saudi Arabia and Russia was expected to resume modest production increases from April after a three-month supply freeze, several delegates said earlier this week.The prospect of a weeks-long regional war is a nightmare scenario for US allies in the Gulf such as the UAE, Saudi Arabia and Qatar. They pushed hard for Iran and the US to agree a diplomatic solution to their impasse over Tehran’s nuclear activities, fearing the chaos and flight shutdowns now unfolding could hit their economies and deter tourists as well as foreign investment.Trump said the military operation began after Iran refused to renounce nuclear weapons, which Tehran has repeatedly said it isn’t pursuing. The most recent round of talks took place on Thursday..Shortly before Trump announced Khamenei’s death, a senior administration official told reporters that Iran refused to move on several sticking points, including moves to curtail regional proxy militant groups. Trump saw that as a key issue in any deal that could be reached, the official said..© 2026 Bloomberg L.P.

Ayatollah Ali Khamenei killed in US-Israel strikes as Donald Trump warns of expanding regional war

Key topics:

Related Stories