Tehran, Iran, July 13 (ANI): Iranian Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei delivered his first public address following the funeral of his father, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, alongside the publication of an online “revenge list” naming 13 world leaders after the late supreme leader’s death.
The list, published late Saturday by the Iranian daily newspaper Hamshahri, names 13 foreign leaders it portrays as targets following Ayatollah Khamenei’s death. The publication coincided with Mojtaba Khamenei’s first public message since his father’s six-day funeral procession last week.
The graphic depicts U.S. President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu with sniper-style crosshairs superimposed over their foreheads. Beneath them are 11 other leaders shown wearing orange prison uniforms, including British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, French President Emmanuel Macron, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, U.S. Central Command Commander Brad Cooper, U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee, Israel Defense Forces Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir, and Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar.
In his statement, Mojtaba Khamenei said, “Vengeance is the will of our nation and must inevitably be carried out.”
He added, “These criminals, whose names appear on a list, will take to their graves the wish of a peaceful death in their beds.”
Despite the publication of the graphic, there was no indication that the list had been officially endorsed by the Iranian government. Mojtaba Khamenei also did not identify the specific individuals he believed were responsible for his father’s death.
The new supreme leader has not appeared publicly since before the outbreak of hostilities and was reportedly injured in the same strike that killed Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on Feb. 28.
The publication comes as several U.S. media outlets reported this week that Iran had allegedly planned to assassinate Trump.
According to CNN, U.S. officials had been monitoring what the network described as a “steady drumbeat” of intelligence regarding potential threats against the president. Citing unnamed sources familiar with the intelligence, CNN reported that Israel shared information with Washington about a specific assassination plot targeting Trump.
Those intelligence concerns may also explain why Trump switched aircraft and traveled on an older plane while departing the NATO summit in Turkey.
Speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One, Trump said, “They want to take out the U.S. leader — me. I’m on whatever list. I saw this morning I’m on every single one of their lists.”
The developments come as both sides have violated the ceasefire, raising new questions about the prospects for a lasting agreement.
The United States carried out strikes on approximately 140 targets on Sunday in response to attacks on commercial vessels in the region.
Tehran claimed the ships had “disregarded warnings” regarding an approved route and declared that the Strait of Hormuz would remain closed until the “end of U.S. interference in this region.”
The strategic waterway carries roughly one-fifth of the world’s oil and liquefied natural gas shipments during peacetime.
Following the U.S. strikes, Tehran also criticized several Gulf nations, including Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar, and Oman.
Doha described the attacks on its territory and neighboring countries as a “dangerous escalation,” while Oman’s state news agency reported that the government “affirms its condemnation and denunciation of this attack.”
In a post on X, Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf, one of the country’s chief negotiators, wrote, “The era of one-sided deals is OVER. We told you: keep your word or pay the price. Reality is knocking.” (ANI)
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