Ayatollah Ali Khamenei: defiant Iranian leader’s rule ended by his enemies

Iran has announced 40 days of state-mandated mourning for its Supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, whose life and 36-year rule ended abruptly during the opening salvo of US-Israeli strikes against his country.Satellite imagery captured the aftermath of a devastating strike on Saturday that killed the 86-year-old cleric: black smoke and heavy damage at his central Tehran compound.Khamenei’s death was confirmed by Iran hours after US President Donald Trump announced the killing and called him “one of the most evil people in History”.Along with Khamenei, Iranian media said that his daughter, son-in-law and granddaughter were killed.A satellite image shows black smoke rising and heavy damage at Iranian Supreme leader Ali Khamenei’s compound, following strikes. Photo: Pleiades Neo (c) Airbus DS 2026 via ReutersSome Iranians grieved while others celebrated ⁠Khamenei’s death. Reports of cheers being heard on Tehran’s streets when news first emerged on Saturday offered a telling sign of his polarising legacy. Khamenei was a figure as feared as he was revered, ruling with an iron fist to maintain the Islamic Republic’s grip through decades of domestic unrest.He was also a charismatic leader who built Iran into a powerful anti-US force, extending its military sway across the Middle East after taking the helm in 1989, following the death of the revolution’s founder, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini.