New Delhi: US President Donald Trump has claimed that Iran’s military capabilities have been severely weakened and alleged that Mojtaba Khamenei, son of the late Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, is “90 per cent gone” following recent US and Israeli military strikes.
Speaking in an interview with Fox News, Trump said Iran had lost much of its military strength, asserting that the country’s navy, air force, and air defence systems had been destroyed. He also claimed that several of Iran’s senior military leaders had been killed during the conflict.
While discussing the strikes, Trump referred to Iran’s late revolutionary leader by name before appearing to shift his remarks to Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who was killed on the opening day of the conflict on February 28. He then alleged that Mojtaba Khamenei had also suffered severe injuries, saying he was “90 per cent gone.”
Mojtaba Khamenei has not appeared in public since February 28, when he was reportedly injured in the same wave of strikes that killed his father. His prolonged absence from public view, including during Ayatollah Ali Khamenei’s funeral last week, has fuelled widespread speculation over his health and whereabouts.
Trump’s comments came as hostilities between the United States and Iran intensified once again after a months long ceasefire collapsed. The US President has formally informed Congress that military operations against Iran resumed last week, following his authorisation of multiple strikes on Iranian targets.
Iran responded by launching attacks targeting Bahrain and two United Arab Emirates linked tankers passing through the Strait of Hormuz. The strikes killed one mariner of Indian origin and injured eight others. The UAE has warned of possible retaliation, raising fears that the conflict could expand further across the region.
The renewed confrontation has also heightened concerns over the security of the Strait of Hormuz, one of the world’s most critical energy shipping routes through which around one fifth of global crude oil and natural gas supplies move during normal conditions. Continued instability in the waterway could have significant implications for global energy markets and regional security.
