Iran’s supreme leader is dead following major attack by US and Israel

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei died following a major attack by Israel and the United States, Iranian state media confirmed early Sunday, throwing the future of the Islamic Republic into doubt and raising the risk of regional instability.

President Donald Trump announced the death hours earlier, saying it gave Iranians their “greatest chance” to “take back” their country.

Iranian state television and the state-run IRNA news agency did not report a cause of death for the 86-year-old.

“Khamenei, one of the most evil people in History, is dead,” Trump wrote in a social media post. He warned of “heavy and pinpoint bombing” that he said would continue throughout the week and even beyond, part of a lethal assault the U.S. has justified as necessary to disable the country’s nuclear capabilities.

The attack opened a stunning new chapter in U.S. intervention in Iran, carried the potential for retaliatory violence and a wider war, and represented a startling...