Iranian media claims top Khamenei adviser is actually alive, after reporting last week that he was killed by Israel

20 June 2025, 10:28 am 1 Edit

The head of Iran's Supreme National Security Council, Ali Shamkhani, at a meeting in the Iranian capital Tehran on June, 12, 2021. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)

Iranian state media claims that Ali Shamkhani, a top adviser to Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, is alive and recovering from serious injuries in a hospital, despite reporting last week that he had been killed in an Israeli strike.

Several news outlets, including the IRGC-controlled Fars News Agency and the semi-official Mehr news agency, carry a statement attributed to Shamkhani. Last week, the same agencies reported that he had been killed in Israel’s initial wave of airstrikes on June 13.

“I am alive and ready to sacrifice myself,” reads the statement attributed to Shamkhani.

The news outlets claim that he is recovering from serious wounds sustained in the Israeli strike and that he is in stable condition.