Kamal Ghorui
Iran’s new Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei has issued a written message thanking the people of Iraq for their support during the ongoing conflict with the United States and Israel, according to Iranian media reports on Sunday.Mojtaba Khamenei, the son of former Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, who was killed in an airstrike at the start of the war on February 28, has yet to make a public appearance since assuming the role. So far, he has communicated only through a limited number of written statements.His absence from public view has fuelled speculation about his health and whereabouts. However, state television and some Iranian officials have suggested that he is recovering from injuries sustained in an airstrike.In the message, Khamenei “expressed his appreciation to the supreme religious authority (in Iraq) and the people of Iraq for their clear stance against aggression against Iran and their support for our country”, the ISNA news agency reported. The reference was to Iraq-based Grand Ayatollah Ali Sistani, one of the most influential figures in Shia Islam.The message followed a meeting between the Islamic Supreme Council of Iraq, a Shia political party, and Iran’s ambassador to Baghdad, the report said. No further details were provided on how the message was conveyed.Since taking over as Supreme Leader, Mojtaba Khamenei has released an initial statement and a separate message marking the Persian New Year, Nowruz. Both were read out on television by another speaker and projected confidence about Iran’s position in the war.State media have continued to circulate images of Khamenei without confirming whether they are recent. He also maintains official accounts on Telegram and X.Last week, US President Donald Trump said Washington was in contact with a “top person” in Iran but clarified that it was not the Supreme Leader.“We have not heard from the son… We don’t know if he is living,” Trump said.Mojtaba Khamenei becomes the third Supreme Leader since the 1979 Islamic Revolution, following his father and the revolution’s founding figure, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini.
