Tehran/Islamabad, July 19 (ANI): Conflicting reports over the whereabouts of Iran’s Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei, coupled with growing internal political divisions and renewed exchanges of fire with the United States, have intensified uncertainty over Iran’s leadership amid the ongoing conflict.
Saudi news outlet Al-Hadath, citing an unnamed Israeli security source, claimed on Sunday that Mojtaba Khamenei “is not in Iran.” The report alleged that Khamenei, who assumed the position of Supreme Leader after his father Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was killed in joint US-Israeli military strikes on February 28, has remained out of public view and has communicated only through written statements since taking office.
The Israeli source further claimed that Khamenei’s official messages are being drafted by newly appointed Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) chief Ahmad Vahidi and other senior IRGC officials. The source also alleged that deep internal divisions within Iran threaten the cohesion of the IRGC and claimed that the United States has discouraged Israel from joining any retaliatory strikes against Iran, even if Tehran attacks Israeli territory. These claims have not been independently verified.
Reports of internal political tensions have also emerged from Tehran. According to CNN, hardline factions accuse Iran’s civilian leadership of carrying out a “soft coup” after concluding a 14-point diplomatic agreement with the United States, arguing that the government compromised national interests instead of retaliating for Ali Khamenei’s death.
The divisions became visible during the funeral ceremonies for the late Supreme Leader, where Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, who led negotiations with the Trump administration, reportedly had to leave after mourners threw rocks while chanting slogans such as “death to the compromiser” and accusing officials of being “traitorous sellouts.”
Hardline lawmakers have also accused the government of attempting to sideline parliament and diminish the authority traditionally exercised by the Supreme Leader. Parliamentarian Mahmoud Nabavian questioned on social media whether a coup was underway, while fellow lawmaker Kamran Ghazanfari alleged that the government was expanding the authority of the Supreme Council for National Security at the expense of both parliament and the Supreme Leader.
With Mojtaba Khamenei remaining absent from public view, President Masoud Pezeshkian, Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, and Foreign Minister Araghchi have emerged as the principal public faces of the government. Iran analyst Arash Azizi told CNN that Khamenei’s continued absence has effectively placed Ghalibaf and his allies in charge of day-to-day governance, further fueling accusations from ultra-hardliners that a political takeover is underway.
Despite remaining out of public view, Mojtaba Khamenei issued another written message on Sunday addressed to the people of Iraq, sharply criticizing the United States.
Calling the US the “Great Satan,” Khamenei said Washington was no longer capable of maintaining a “trouble-free, domineering presence” across West Asia. He argued that the massive funeral processions held across Iran and Iraq for his father had opened “a new chapter of awakening” against what he described as the designs of the “Arrogant Powers.”
“The Great Satan—the criminal US—has now realised that the continuation of its trouble-free, domineering presence in the region is nothing but a naive fantasy,” Khamenei said in the statement.
He added that the large public gatherings demonstrated the failure of efforts to weaken relations between Iran and Iraq.
Mojtaba Khamenei has not appeared publicly since the February 28 strikes that killed his father. Reports indicate he was injured during the attack, although no video or photographic evidence of his condition has been released. In a written statement issued on July 11, he vowed revenge, declaring that those responsible for his father’s death “will carry their dream of a peaceful death in bed to the grave.”
Meanwhile, Iran’s Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi said Tehran had suspended its commitments under the interim Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding after accusing Washington of violating the agreement by continuing military strikes against Iran. He said Iran had also suspended implementation of the accord in response.
Separately, Iran’s Ambassador to Pakistan, Reza Amiri Moghadam, accused US President Donald Trump of dismantling two major diplomatic achievements between Washington and Tehran—the 2015 Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) and the recently signed 14-point Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding.
In a series of posts on X, Moghadam said Trump had “destroyed two important achievements in the history of contemporary diplomacy” despite speaking about peace. He argued that Washington violated the newly signed agreement less than 20 days after it came into effect, demonstrating that the United States had “no serious determination” to uphold the accord.
The ambassador contended that the United States sought instability regardless of whether a formal agreement existed, saying Washington’s commitment to peace had proved to be “mere rhetoric.”
The exchange of accusations comes as military hostilities between the United States and Iran continue following the collapse of the 14-point agreement, with both sides carrying out retaliatory strikes across the region. (ANI)
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