Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei made his first public appearance Saturday since the 12-day war between Iran, Israel, and the United States.
State media reported that the Iranian leader attended an Ashura-eve ceremony at Tehran’s Imam Khomeini Mosque on Saturday. In videos shared by multiple media outlets on social media, Khamenei was seen waving to worshippers dressed in black.
❗️ Crowd erupts as Iran’s Supreme Leader Khamenei makes FIRST public appearance since war with Israel pic.twitter.com/gPbuKO2X9l
— RT (@RT_com) July 5, 2025
The U.S. joined the Israel-Iran war on June 22, targeting Fordow, Natanz, and Isfahan nuclear facilities with 125 aircraft.
Prior to the strike, President Donald Trump urged Iran’s unconditional surrender and said the U.S. knows where Khamenei is hiding but does not want him killed “for now.”
Israel’s Defense Minister Israel Katz said the country came close to targeting Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei during the recent 12-day conflict, but Khamenei evaded a potential assassination by retreating into deep hiding.
Khamenei, the longest-serving leader in the Middle East, reportedly spent the 12-day conflict with Israel and the U.S. hiding in a bunker with limited communication.
Khamenei’s new public appearance comes just a day after President Donald Trump warned against Iran restarting its nuclear program, saying, “If they did start, there’d be a problem. We wouldn’t allow that to happen.”
