Iran’s FM: Khamenei is still alive ‘as far as I know’

28 February 2026, 4:33 pm

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Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi speaks during the 17th edition of the Al-Jazeera Forum in Doha, Qatar on February 7, 2026. (Karim JAAFAR / AFP)

Iran’s foreign minister says the country’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, is still alive “as far as I know.”

Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi is speaking in an interview with NBC News, after Israel’s Channel 12 news reported in the last hour that Israel’s assessment of Khamenei was “likely killed” in Israeli airstrikes earlier today.

Speaking live, Araghchi also says two commanders have died in the strikes, but senior officials in the regime have survived.

“All high-ranking officials are alive,” he says. “So everybody is now in its position [sic], and we are handling this situation, and everything is fine.”