Iran Denies Supreme Leader ‘Coma’ Reports Amid Social Media

Iran has hit back at claims on social media that Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei is close to death or in a coma by releasing a photo of him meeting a Lebanese official.

The image on Xformerly Twitter, purports to show a meeting between the Iranian leader and Mojtaba Amani, Iran’s ambassador to Lebanonn at noon on Sunday, November 17, in Tehran.

Its publication followed tweets claiming Khamenei was in a coma or dead that had erupted on November 16.

Just one day earlier, on November 15, Iran International had reported discussions by the nation’s assembly of experts on candidates in the running to succeed him, including Khamenei’s son Mojtaba Khamenei. But the need to identify a successor was due to the risk of assassination the top leader faced, not because of ill health, according to the report.

Newsweek contacted the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Islamic Republic of Iran for comment via email.

If the photo, posted on Khamenei’s X account, and reported timings are authentic, the burst of tweets about his health would appear to be fake and potentially triggered by the discussion about his successor.

A user, Dr. Maalouf, a geopolitical commentator, wrote on November 16: “BREAKING – Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, is reportedly comatose and DEAD. Good riddance! Iran will be free soon!”

The Global 202, which lists itself as a news and media account, wrote on November 17: “BREAKING Dramatic reports in Iran: The 85-year-old leader of Iran, Ali Khamenei, fell into a coma. His condition is critical.” The account has no website specified and no article linked.

Another user, JN Araain, a self-described human rights crusader, wrote on November 17: “Rumours are swirling that Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei is in a coma. Earlier reports suggested his serious illness and now whispers suggest that his second son, Mojtaba, could succeed him. Isn’t it ironic how a theocracy should be ruled by divine will, resorting to what looks like family business #NepotismAtItsFinest #ReligionOrDynasty.”

But some X users cast doubt on the rumors on social media, including Sarah Raviani, a spokesperson for the group Iranians for Trump, who wrote: “I’d love to think Khamenei is dead but the worst people seem to live on forever. These rumors have been swirling for over a decade – he’s reportedly been in a “coma” over the years. Just more regime soap opera drama.”

New York Times had previously written about the Iranian Supreme Leader’s alleged ill health in an article published on October 26, but later corrected it, writing that there have been no recent reports suggesting that Khamenei is ill.

The Iranian supreme leader has three candidates to succeed him, led by his son, according to Iran International’s report from the Assembly of Experts meeting, which was told that Khamenei is in good health and shows no signs of illness.

Jason Brodsky, a policy director at United Against Nuclear Iran, also condemned the coma claims in a post on X, writing: “Tweets about how #Iran‘s regime’s top leader is in a coma or even dead is all over my timeline. There is not a credible news outlet that has reported as such.

“So please be careful what you post.”

Mojtaba Khamenei, 55, has reportedly been involved in making government decisions behind the scenes for nearly 30 years, and former adviser to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Iran, Gabriel Noronha, noted earlier on X the significance of his potential appointment.

Noronha noted that reports of the younger Khamenei’s possible succession followed the death of Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi in May in a helicopter crash, and that “he shares his father’s ideological views, but the decisions he makes on foreign policy, on nuclear weapons and how to making a way on social and religious issues will be hugely important to see if the regime survives.”

Noronha has also previously told Newsweek: “Mojtaba has already begun to take over some of his father’s lesser duties as supreme leader. Most importantly, he has been very close to the IRGC and the so-called revolutionary forces in the regime, which are pulling many of the strings and seeking eternal confrontation with the West. “

“He had built up networks of influence with the powerful cadres, and especially with members of the Assembly of Experts, the 88-person body tasked with selecting the next supreme leader.”

The younger Khamenei is also reportedly known for suppressing protests after the 2009 election, and he was given the title of ayatollah in 2021, according to Economic Times.

The other potential candidates are i.a Alireza Arafithe second deputy chairman of the Assembly of Experts in addition to other duties, and Hashem Hosseini Bushehri, the first deputy chairman of the Assembly of Experts. Arafi is reportedly a confidant of Iran’s Supreme Leader, while Bushehri also has ties to Khamenei.