The Life, Legacy and Martyrdom of Imam Khamenei: Architect of Revolution and the Axis of Resistance

By Al-Ahed News

Martyr Imam Ali Khamenei stood as one of the most influential political and religious figures of the modern Middle East, whose life has been closely intertwined with the trajectory of the Islamic Revolution in Iran. From his early involvement in revolutionary activism to decades of leadership, his legacy is presented as one shaped by conflict, state-building, ideological continuity and regional influence.

Section One: From Humble Beginnings to Revolutionary Awakening

Born on April 19, 1939, in the holy city of Mashhad, home to the shrine of Imam Ali ibn Musa Al-Rida [AS], Sayyed Ali Hosseini Khamenei was raised in a humble religious household. His father, the eminent scholar Jawad Khamenei, was among Mashhad’s respected clerics, providing him from an early age with a deeply religious and scholarly upbringing, as Imam Khamenei himself later recalled in a recorded account about his father.

He began his religious studies at a young age, memorizing the Holy Quran and completing his introductory seminary education in Mashhad. In 1958, he moved to the holy city of Qom to pursue advanced studies at its renowned seminary, which has long been, and remains, a leading center of Islamic scholarship. It was in Qom that he met his spiritual mentor and the leader of the Islamic movement, Imam Ruhollah Mousavi Khomeini. Drawn to Imam Khomeini’s revolutionary vision, he embraced his political understanding of Islam, founded upon rejecting foreign domination and establishing an Islamic state.

The Awakening of Consciousness and the Dawn of Revolution

Years before the defining event of his life, the young Ali Khamenei experienced a pivotal turning point. At the age of thirteen, he listened to a fiery preacher denounce the monarchy at the Felekour Mosque in Mashhad in 1952. That moment ignited within him a deep awareness of revolutionary Islamic thought and the necessity of struggling against the Shah’s dictatorship and its American, British and “Israeli” backers.

With the rise of the revolutionary movement led by Imam Khomeini in the early 1960s, Khamenei joined its ranks and became one of its leading field organizers in Mashhad and the province of Khorasan. His revolutionary activities led to his arrest on six occasions by SAVAK, the Shah’s secret police, and he was repeatedly exiled to remote border regions. Yet he neither wavered nor surrendered. These early ordeals forged his leadership qualities and prepared him for the immense responsibilities that lay ahead.

Section Two: After the Revolution, From the Battlefield to the Helm of Leadership

1. The 1979 Revolution: The Birth of a New Order

With the victory of the Islamic Revolution in February 1979 and the fall of the Shah’s regime, Sayyed Khamenei emerged as one of the leading figures on the Revolutionary Council and a founding architect of the new Islamic Republic. He assumed several key security and military responsibilities, serving as Deputy Minister of Defense, overseeing the affairs of the newly established Islamic Revolutionary Guard [IRG], and acting as Tehran’s Friday Prayer Leader and chief preacher.

A gifted orator and a mature revolutionary voice, he became widely recognized for articulating the Revolution’s objectives, rallying public support for its defense, and countering Western media disinformation campaigns.

2. The Imposed War and the Presidency

In September 1980, Saddam Hussein launched a war against Iran with primary American backing and direction, exploiting the turmoil left in the wake of the Shah’s overthrow and the uncertainties that followed the Revolution in an attempt to crush it in its infancy.

This marked a defining chapter in Khamenei’s life. Donning a military uniform, he went to the front lines, serving as Imam Khomeini’s representative on the Supreme Defense Council and making numerous visits to the battlefronts.

In October 1981, following the assassination of President Mohammad Ali Rajai, Sayyed Khamenei was elected President of the Islamic Republic with an overwhelming 95 percent of the vote. He assumed office at one of the darkest moments of the war, as the fledgling state faced a devastating Iraqi military offensive backed by the United States and several Arab governments, crippling economic sanctions, and an intense media campaign against the Revolution.

President Khamenei steered the country with resolve throughout the conflict. He oversaw the liberation of Khorramshahr in 1982, a landmark victory that reversed the tide of the war and demonstrated Iran’s ability not only to endure but also to regain the initiative. He continued to direct the country’s wartime efforts through the final years of the conflict, culminating in the adoption of UN Security Council Resolution 598, which established a ceasefire in 1988. With the end of the war, Iran, and Sayyed Khamenei personally, entered a new and challenging chapter marked by post-war reconstruction and the passing of Imam Khomeini, the Leader, Guide, and founder of the Islamic Revolution.

3. Assassination Attempt: The Living Martyr

In June 1981, while delivering the Friday sermon at Abu Dhar Mosque in Tehran, agents of the hypocrite Mujahedin-e Khalq [MEK] planted a bomb hidden inside a tape recorder and detonated it. The explosion left him severely wounded on his right side, causing a temporary coma and requiring intensive hospital care in Tehran.

Ayatollah Khamenei survived by a miracle, but his right arm was left permanently paralyzed, a condition that remained with him for the rest of his life. The injury also affected his lungs and vocal cords. This incident turned him into a “living martyr” in the eyes of many Iranians, a symbol of resilience and unbreakable will, and only strengthened his determination to continue along the path of the Revolution and jihad.

Section Three: Supreme Leadership, More Than Three Decades of Endurance and Construction

1. Supreme Leadership: A Story of Will

After the end of the war, specifically on June 3, 1989, the soul of Imam Khomeini ascended to its Creator, Almighty God, at the age of 87, leaving behind a vast vacuum in the leadership of the Ummah. At that time, Sayyed Khamenei, then in his fifties, was President of the Islamic Republic and already a prominent figure among the Iranian people, scholars, and political elite.

He soon emerged as the leading candidate to succeed Imam Khomeini, given his revolutionary and jihadi record, his scholarly and religious qualifications, as well as his experience, political acumen, and administrative skill. He was also regarded in this light by the late Imam Khomeini himself, who often praised him in his gatherings and viewed him as possessing the qualifications for leadership.

Following extensive discussion and lengthy deliberations among the members of the Assembly of Experts, Ayatollah Khamenei was chosen as the new Supreme Leader of Iran. This marked a major turning point in his life. The new leader would not merely be a political head of state, but the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution and the ideological, revolutionary, and spiritual successor to the great Imam Khomeini.

2. State-Building: From Weakness to Strength

Over the thirty-four years following the Iran-Iraq War, Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei guided Iran toward becoming an advanced and modern state. Under his leadership, the country achieved significant progress across a wide range of sectors, transforming itself into a major regional power whose influence can no longer be ignored.

A. Security and Military Affairs

Under his leadership, Iran’s security and military institutions underwent substantial development. The Iranian armed forces advanced considerably, surpassing many of their regional counterparts, while the Islamic Revolutionary Guard [IRG] evolved from a domestic security institution into a regional force with cross-border reach.

Ayatollah Khamenei devoted particular attention to the Quds Force, viewing it as a specialized unit responsible for overseas operations related to Al-Quds [“Jerusalem”], Palestine and what it describes as their liberation. Led by the late Major General Qassem Soleimani, the force was also tasked with advancing the objectives of the Islamic Revolution and supporting what Iran describes as the causes of oppressed and disadvantaged peoples around the world.

Iran also significantly expanded its missile capabilities, building one of the region’s strongest missile arsenals, including drones, ballistic missiles, and cruise missiles. These systems are described as having the range to reach deep into “Israeli”-held territory and to strike all US military bases across the region.

In recent years, Khamenei has also overseen the development of advanced air and naval defense capabilities. In addition, he laid the foundations for a robust military-industrial sector that transformed Iran from an importer of weapons into an exporter of arms and military equipment.

B. Scientific and Technological Development

Despite crippling sanctions and economic isolation, Iran witnessed a remarkable transformation in science and technology. It became one of the few countries in the world capable of enriching uranium, successfully launched satellites into space, and developed advanced medical and industrial nanotechnologies. Iranian scientific output also rose to prominent positions both regionally and internationally.

Ayatollah Khamenei was a strong advocate for scientists and researchers, consistently emphasizing that knowledge is a source of power and that no nation can become strong without scientific advancement.

C. Economic Development

Despite severe economic sanctions imposed by the United States and Europe, Iran achieved self-sufficiency under his leadership in a wide range of industrial, agricultural, and pharmaceutical products. Khamenei also introduced the concept of the “Resistance Economy,” an economic framework designed to reduce Iran’s vulnerability to external pressure and sanctions while strengthening the country’s food, pharmaceutical, and industrial security.

3. Leading the Axis of Resistance: Turning Vision into Reality

The “Axis of Resistance” is presented as one of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei’s greatest geopolitical achievements. Under his leadership, Iran forged a strategic alliance of political parties, armed groups, and movements across Palestine, Lebanon, Iraq, Syria, and Yemen, positioning itself at the center of what it describes as an Islamic resistance project opposed to what it calls Zionist-American domination.

● The Islamic Resistance in Lebanon [Hezbollah]

Hezbollah evolved under the leadership of the great martyr Sayyed Khamenei from a local movement into the most powerful military and political force in Lebanon and one of the region’s most influential actors. It became the spearhead of the struggle against “Israeli” occupation, leading what it describes as the resistance effort that culminated in “Israel’s” withdrawal from southern Lebanon in June 2000.

The group also defended Lebanon during the July 2006 war with “Israel” and has since developed a missile arsenal that it says is capable of striking targets deep inside “Israel” with precision.

The movement was led by its Secretary-General, the late martyr Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, who was martyred alongside several Hezbollah commanders in “Israeli” airstrikes on September 27, 2024, during what it describes as the campaign to support Gaza.

● Hamas, Palestinian Islamic Jihad and Other Palestinian Resistance Factions

Iran extended political, financial, military, and training support to Palestinian resistance factions, enabling them to continue fighting against “Israel.”

The Al-Aqsa Flood Operation of October 7, 2023, which shattered the image of the “Israeli” military as an invincible force, was the culmination of decades of Iranian support under Ayatollah Khamenei’s leadership.

● Yemen: Ansarullah

When the Saudi-led military intervention in Yemen began in 2015, Iran did not leave the Yemeni people to face the conflict alone. Iran provided military and technical support to Ansarullah [the Houthis], enabling the group to develop into a force capable of striking targets deep inside Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and “Israel.”

Ansarullah directly confronted the United States, the United Kingdom, and “Israel” during their military campaign against Yemen between 2023 and 2025. It also imposed a maritime blockade on “Israel” through the Bab El-Mandeb Strait and the Red Sea, which remained in place until “Israel” ended its military campaign and blockade of Gaza.

● The Iraqi Islamic Resistance

Following the US-led invasion of Iraq in 2003, Iran helped fill the political and security vacuum created by the Americans by supporting the establishment of a broad network of political, military, and armed resistance organizations that worked to resist the US presence in Iraq, weaken American influence, and promote Iraq’s sovereignty, freedom and national rights.

Iran also played a role in the formation of the Popular Mobilization Forces [PMF], which fought against the Wahhabi Daesh [Arabic acronym for “ISIS” / “ISIL”] terrorist group and prevented it from taking control of Iraq.

The Iraqi resistance factions became an integral part of the Axis of Resistance, posing a significant challenge to the US military presence in Iraq and serving as a persistent source of pressure on “Israel.”

● Syria: Protecting the Heart of the Arab World

When the Syrian conflict erupted in 2011 and Damascus was threatened with falling into the hands of extremist groups backed by Gulf states and Western countries, Iran intervened under Ayatollah Khamenei’s leadership. Members of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard [IRG], together with Iraqi, Lebanese, Afghan and Pakistani allied forces, were deployed to support the Syrian government and prevent its collapse.

This intervention dealt a decisive blow to the US-“Israeli”-extremist project in Syria and the wider region while ensuring the continued strength, resilience and influence of the Resistance.

Section Four: Intellectual and Religious Legacy, A Global Spiritual Leadership

1. Religious Authority

On the religious level, Ayatollah Khamenei is presented as an unparalleled religious authority of his era, described by his son, Sayyed Mojtaba Khamenei, as “unique in his time.” Major jurisprudential and scholarly challenges have demonstrated both his qualifications and his standing as a leading religious authority of international stature.

He authored thousands of pages on Islamic jurisprudence and legal theory, issued hundreds of thousands of legal opinions [fatwas] for his followers around the world, and published dozens of books on Islamic philosophy, ethics, poetry and literature.

He is regarded as one of the most widely followed maraji’ al-taqlid [sources of emulation] in Iran and across the Arab and Islamic worlds, with followers and adherents spanning the globe.

2. Wilayat Al-Faqih and the Jurisprudence of Resistance

Ayatollah Khamenei was not merely an Islamic jurist but also the architect of a new school of thought: the Jurisprudence of Resistance. Under this framework, every Muslim is viewed as having a duty to stand against oppression and domination, regardless of the sacrifices involved.

Sayyed Khamenei embodied the concept of the jurist-leader [al-faqih al-qa’id], which holds that a senior religious authority should serve not only as a source of religious rulings [fatwas] but also as a political and resistance leader, guiding the Muslim community toward security and stability.

3. A Religious Authority in the Muslim World

Many Sunni Muslims across the Arab and Islamic worlds came to regard Ayatollah Khamenei as the foremost “leader of the resistance,” transcending traditional sectarian divisions.

His writings and speeches consistently focused on the major causes of the Muslim world, including Palestine, Al-Quds, Islamic unity, support for oppressed peoples, resistance to foreign domination and global arrogance, the pursuit of freedom, sovereignty and independence, opposition to normalization with “Israel,” and the rejection of division and sectarian conflict.

This vision won him the admiration and loyalty of millions of Muslims worldwide, including many in Arab countries whose governments maintained adversarial political relations with Iran.

Section Five: Confronting Global Arrogance, Standing Firm Against the “Great Satan”

1. The United States: The Primary Adversary

From his early years of activism through his tenure as Iran’s political and religious leader until his death, Ayatollah Khamenei maintained a deeply critical view of the United States, describing himself as well acquainted with its policies and methods. He frequently echoed Imam Khomeini’s characterization of the United States as “the Great Satan” and as the foremost enemy of Iran, the Islamic Revolution, and oppressed peoples.

Sayyed Khamenei viewed the United States as the spearhead of Western dominance in the Islamic world, the principal supporter and patron of “Israel,” and the root cause of many of the challenges facing Muslims and the wider world. He regarded any concession or submission to the United States as an act of surrender and betrayal.

For this reason, he categorically rejected yielding to US pressure and sanctions or engaging in direct negotiations with Washington, maintaining that such negotiations would be futile and that the United States could not be trusted.

Although indirect negotiations ultimately led to the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action [JCPOA] in 2015, Sayyed Khamenei continued to warn against placing confidence in the United States and the West or making political or legal concessions that, in his view, would undermine Iran’s interests, sovereignty, or the rights of its people.

When US President Donald Trump withdrew from the nuclear agreement in 2018 and reimposed sweeping sanctions, the decision was widely seen as vindicating his warnings and demonstrating the foresight and soundness of his judgment.

2. “Israel”: “A Cancerous Tumor That Must Be Removed”

From the beginning of his political and religious activism through his tenure as Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Khamenei remained committed to the principles of the Islamic Revolution, the legacy of Ayatollah Khomeini, and an uncompromising opposition to “Israel,” which he described as “a cancerous tumor in the body of the Islamic nation.”

He maintained that “the liberation of Palestine, from the river to the sea, is a religious and humanitarian duty.” He went beyond rhetoric and political support for the Palestinian cause by translating these positions into concrete action aimed at “Israel’s” eventual disappearance. He provided Palestinian factions in Gaza and the West Bank with weapons, funding, equipment, training and other forms of support.

Sayyed Khamenei elevated the annual observance of Quds Day into a major cause and a large-scale annual event in Iran and around the world. Throughout his speeches, meetings, and public statements, he consistently predicted “Israel’s” eventual disappearance, asserting that future generations would witness the end of what he described as the “usurping entity.”

3. The Strategy of “Strategic Patience”

Imam Khamenei’s military acumen was reflected in his doctrine of Strategic Patience. The concept is described as avoiding a full-scale war on terms chosen by the adversary or becoming drawn into internal conflict or sectarian strife. Instead, it emphasizes pursuing alternative methods that would inflict greater political and military costs on the opponent while steadily strengthening Iran’s own capabilities.

He focused on expanding Iran’s domestic military capacity, building an extensive missile and defense infrastructure, and supporting legitimate resistance movements wherever they existed.

This approach ensured the survival of the Islamic Republic and the broader Axis of Resistance despite repeated challenges, attacks and conspiracies by “global Zionism.” Although these struggles came at a heavy cost, including Sayyed Khamenei’s martyrdom and the martyrdom of numerous senior Iranian and allied commanders, they did not weaken the Islamic Republic or bring about its collapse.

Owing to his careful planning, strategic preparations, and leadership, Iran remained resilient. This outcome surprised both adversaries and allies alike, humiliated the United States and “Israel,” and ultimately forced them to retreat, accept Iran’s conditions and make concessions during their most recent military campaign against Iran.

Section Six: The Human and Social Dimension, A Guide and Leader of the People

1. A Life of Simplicity and Humility

In contrast to the luxury and extravagance associated with the rulers of Iran’s former monarchy and many contemporary world leaders, Ayatollah Khamenei was known for his modest and austere lifestyle.

He lived in a simple home in Tehran, modestly furnished and declined to reside in a private palace or provide his family with a life of opulence. His way of life reflected that of Imam Ali ibn Abi Talib [AS], suggesting that he embodied the same values of humility and self-denial in the modern era.

Imam Khamenei remained close to the Iranian people throughout his life, sharing in their concerns, representing their aspirations, and dedicating himself tirelessly to serving, protecting, and defending them with remarkable energy, even in old age. He once said:

My years race swiftly toward ninety.

Yet my spirit remains at twenty.

Images of Imam Khamenei regularly meeting with people from all walks of life, embracing supporters, sitting with the poor, the needy, and the disadvantaged, presenting gifts to those who sought his blessing, and visiting the families and graves of those martyred in conflict, as well as the wounded and their relatives, symbolized the image of a “guardian-leader” detached from material possessions, devoted to a life of simplicity and steadfastly committed to the goals of the Islamic Revolution.

2. His Relationship with Youth and Scholars

Ayatollah Khamenei placed exceptional importance on young people, considering the neglect of youth to be “the greatest mistake.” He encouraged scientific research among young people, regularly allocated time to meet with university students and professors, and consistently emphasized the importance of supporting and empowering them.

He focused on raising future generations with a spirit of struggle and resistance.

In addition, he maintained a close and respectful relationship with religious scholars, seminaries and students of religious studies, one resembling that of a father with his children and a teacher with his students. He knew many of them by name, took an interest in their personal and academic affairs and attended their private scholarly and literary gatherings.

3. The Great Thinker and Exceptional Leader

Imam Khamenei was a great philosopher, a prominent thinker, and a leading strategic theorist in political and intellectual thought on a global scale. He was characterized by his boundless energy, intellectual vitality, composure and strong presence, enjoying high standing in the hearts of Iranians in particular and the wider Muslim world in general.

His energy and capabilities appeared to surpass even those of younger generations despite his advanced age. He remained constantly active, deeply engaged in national, regional and international affairs, with no period of rest or withdrawal.

He held frequent weekly meetings with a wide range of groups, including senior state officials, scholars, academics, engineers, physicians, workers, youth, students, women and even children. His enduring and inspirational presence left a significant legacy that continues to influence successive generations.

4. The Leader and Islamic Unity: A Strategic Project of Power

Imam Khamenei was one of the most prominent advocates of Islamic unity, viewing it not as a tactical option but as a strategic necessity. He believed that the survival, stability, and sovereignty of the Muslim world depended on cohesion and solidarity among Muslims, free from sectarian and doctrinal divisions exploited and deepened by external adversaries.

He translated this vision into practice by establishing and supporting the World Forum for Proximity of Islamic Schools of Thought in 1990. This institution is described as a framework for fostering Islamic unity and bringing together scholars and thinkers from various Islamic schools of thought through its annual activities and conferences.

He was keen to organize the International Islamic Unity Conference, held annually in Tehran since its inception in 1990. Organized by the same forum during the Prophet Mohammad’s birthday celebrations, known as Islamic Unity Week, the conference brings together prominent scholars, thinkers, religious figures, government ministers from Islamic countries, jurists, university professors, and other distinguished participants from across the Islamic world and within Iran.

The conference serves as a platform for scholarly dialogue, the exchange of perspectives, and the strengthening of mutual understanding. Sayyed Khamenei consistently warned against efforts by the enemies to sow division among Muslims and analyzed the mechanisms and tools used to create discord within the Islamic world.

5. The Leader and Crisis and Risk Management

During the severe COVID-19 pandemic that struck Iran, Imam Khamenei made the decision to prioritize the development and production of an entirely Iranian vaccine by the country’s scientists, experts and young researchers in order to protect people’s lives from the deadly virus. He also sought to shield the Iranian people from the risks posed by imported American, British, and other Western vaccines, which he regarded as unsafe and unreliable, expressing concern that they could have been biologically engineered to harm the populations of developing countries.

To demonstrate his confidence in the domestically produced vaccine, Imam Khamenei publicly received it before the world’s cameras, sending what he intended as a message of reassurance and confidence to the Iranian people, whom he consistently described as deserving of his protection and service.

This decision helped save the lives of hundreds of thousands of Iranians and demonstrated Iran’s capacity for scientific innovation and international competitiveness, with the vaccine being presented as capable of competing with products developed by the world’s leading pharmaceutical companies. For this reason, the Iranian people continued to stand by him, believing that he was protecting them from what they viewed as deception by the Western pharmaceutical industry.

Section Seven: Martyrdom, The Moment That Changed Everything

1. The Assassination

In the early hours of February 28, 2026, amid an open war waged by the United States and “Israel” against Iran, the Supreme Leader’s headquarters in Tehran was targeted in a joint US-“Israeli” missile and airstrike. The attack led to the martyrdom of Imam Khamenei and several members of his honorable family. The strike was an unprecedented American-Zionist crime that shattered international agreements and conventions, undermined the foundations of the global order, and exposed what it portrays as the most criminal, oppressive and corrupt face of the United States and “Israel.”

The great leader refused to leave his position or seek shelter while his people were under bombardment and attack without refuge or protection. Instead, he chose to remain alongside them, sharing their fate in the path of jihad, dignity, honor and steadfastness, even at the cost of his own life and the dismemberment of his body in sacrifice for his people, his revolution, his Islamic homeland and its political system.

He attained a blessed and sacred martyrdom unlike any other, one that united his people and the Muslim Ummah and breathed new life and spirit into them. Foremost among them were the great mujahideen of Islam and the courageous Islamic Revolutionary Guards, who rained missiles, drones and other weapons upon the enemy with unwavering resolve, determination, and a thirst for vengeance. They dealt crushing blows and destroyed its bases, fortifications and strongholds through the might and power of God, and through the ever-flowing, blazing blood of the martyred leader, a force sweeping away the enemies of Islam and the enemies of the beloved Iranian Muslim people.

2. Domestic Reactions: Unity and Cohesion

The leader’s martyrdom was not merely a passing shock; it was a pivotal event upon which the enemy had pinned all its futile hopes and ambitions. Yet what astonished and dismayed its enemies was that Iran neither wavered, weakened nor collapsed. On the contrary, it was reborn, emerging more united and resilient than ever. His martyrdom led to:

● National unity: All divisions and differences among Iran’s political and academic elites, as well as within Iranian society, dissolved. The Iranian nation united in the spirit of a single man—the martyred leader, Imam Khamenei—and rallied behind the new Leader and the steadfast Islamic system. They regarded the pure blood of the Supreme Leader as a defining challenge for both the people and the state: either the system would fall, or they would stand together as one.

● Mass popular mobilization: Millions of Iranian youth volunteered to join the Basij, the Army, and the Islamic Revolutionary Guards to continue the path charted by their martyred leader and to defend Iran, its political system, and the achievements and gains of the Islamic Revolution.

● An intensified discourse of jihad and resistance: Following the martyrdom, resistance against the United States and “Israel” became a sacred duty in Iran. Iranian scholars, preachers, intellectuals, cultural figures, and political leaders, both at home and abroad, embraced a unified discourse of jihad that was more resolute, uncompromising, and fervent than before, coupled with a firm determination to avenge the martyred leader and respond to the aggression and its perpetrators with the utmost force and resolve.

● Filling the leadership vacuum: The greatest concern was the vacuum left by the martyred leader, Imam Khamenei—who would succeed him in leading the Revolution, who would become the new just Wali al-Faqih possessing all the required qualifications, and how the process of selecting the new Leader would unfold amid the shock of the attack, the pressures of war, and enemy interference. This was the central point upon which the foolish enemy had gambled in its attempt to overthrow the Islamic system. The treacherous attack had targeted not only the martyred leader but also several members of his family, particularly his son, Sayyed Mojtaba, whom the enemy had long regarded as a potential future leader and had focused on for nearly two decades. For this reason, Sayyed Mojtaba was also on the list of US-“Israeli” targets in the coordinated attack against his father, the martyred leader.

Yet the will of Almighty God proved decisive. His decree and His plan prevailed, though most people do not know.

God bestowed His care, grace, and protection upon Sayyed Khamenei’s son, preserving him through what is described as a miraculous deliverance. He was chosen to become the new Leader of the blessed Islamic Revolution, the bearer of its lofty banner and unfurled standard, continuing its course in the footsteps of the two great Imams—the martyred Sayyed Khamenei and the founding Imam, Sayyed Khomeini—without deviation or ambiguity, safeguarding its noble objectives so that it would remain at the height of its strength, dignity and sacred path of jihad, however much the disbelievers may detest it.

3. Regional and International Reactions

● The Axis of Resistance: Leaders of Hezbollah, Hamas, the Palestinian Islamic Jihad Movement, the resistance factions, Ansarullah, and the Iraqi resistance movements mourned his passing, declared a period of mourning, and vowed revenge. They warned the United States and “Israel” of severe consequences and launched widespread and devastating retaliatory strikes. This moment affirmed that the spirit of the martyred Imam Khamenei and his blessed blood would remain alive in their hearts until the Day of Judgment.

● The Arab and Muslim peoples: Although most governments responded cautiously, ranging from official condolences to silence, the Arab and Muslim street mourned him deeply. Across Iraq, Yemen, Lebanon, Palestine, the Levant, Egypt, Jordan, Morocco, Sudan, Libya, Tunisia, Algeria, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Indonesia, Malaysia, Azerbaijan and the rest of the Muslim world, as well as among Muslim diaspora communities, millions mourned the leader of jihad, resistance, and Islam. They held demonstrations and published thousands of tributes and elegiac poems in his memory.

Section Eight: The Consequences of the Martyrdom of Imam Khamenei

1. At the Domestic Level

The martyrdom of the Leader created a temporary vacuum, but it was quickly filled by an extraordinary political order. Within a short period, the Assembly of Experts convened and elected Sayyed Mojtaba Khamenei as the new Supreme Leader. This development fell like a thunderbolt upon the enemies, striking them with shock and disbelief and filling their hearts with despair and frustration. Khamenei the son—firm, decisive, and resolute in his first address to both domestic and foreign audiences—declared absolute non-retreat and the continuation of the path of jihad until the enemy is broken and vengeance and retribution are achieved, a course that was fully realized.

The martyrdom of Imam Khamenei the father gave rise to a new revolutionary and militant spirit, one that knows no concessions. Iranian armed forces and the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps delivered the fiercest and most powerful strikes against the heads of the aggressors and their bases, confronting the assault with unparalleled valor. The attackers sustained painful blows on land, sea and air, forcing the United States and “Israel” to bitterly regret their heinous crime and grave wrongdoing.

2. At the Level of the Axis of Resistance

The martyrdom of Khamenei did not extinguish the Holy Spirit that led the resistance, as the enemy had planned and hoped. The Iranian response and that of the resistance factions to the assassination was immediate and overwhelming: a wide and intense wave of missile strikes targeting US bases in the region, its naval vessels at sea, and the malignant occupying entity, continuing for weeks without interruption. The event demonstrated that the Axis was not merely a collection of limited factions prone to contraction, dissolution, or retreat at the first major strike, but rather a solid and cohesive entity capable of steadfastness, retaliation and retribution.

3. Regional Stability

The martyrdom of Imam Khamenei plunged the entire region into violent shock.

The event of the martyrdom and the crime of assassination were not matters that could be easily absorbed through formal maneuvers or contained through political incentives. Rather, it was a momentous development at which politics and diplomacy came to a complete halt, and hard military power surged forward, shaking the entire region and the world. US bases sustained destructive strikes that rendered them inoperative across approximately ten countries where they had been present for nearly four decades. The export of energy, derivatives, and petrochemicals came to a complete standstill. The region, along with the world, entered a state of total paralysis.

Flames of war erupted, and battles of hellfire broke out against the criminal occupation entity in a manner that had not been anticipated. The United States and its corrupt proxy were unable to achieve military resolution or accomplish their declared objectives and were forced—reluctantly, subdued, and humiliated—to turn toward peace and accept the conditions set by Tehran.