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QUOTES: Global reaction to the killing of Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei

LONDON - Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was killed in U.S. and Israeli strikes, state media confirmed as another wave of attacks hit the country on Sunday.


Reuters bureaus

March 1, 2026

Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei killed in Israeli and U.S. strikes
People walk near a mural featuring an image of Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei as people gather after Khamenei was killed in Israeli and U.S. strikes on Saturday, in Tehran, Iran, March 1, 2026.

Majid Asgaripour/West Asia News Agency via Reuters

LONDON - Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was killed in U.S. and Israeli strikes, state media confirmed as another wave of attacks hit the country on Sunday.


Below is international reaction to his death.


EUROPEAN UNION FOREIGN POLICY CHIEF KAJA KALLAS

"The death of Ali Khamenei is a defining moment in Iran’s history. What comes next is uncertain. But there is now an open path to a different Iran, one that its people may have greater freedom to shape."


RUSSIAN PRESIDENT VLADIMIR PUTIN

"Please accept my deep condolences in connection with the murder of the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Republic of Iran, Seyed Ali Khamenei, and members of his family, committed in cynical violation of all norms of human morality and international law."


SWEDISH FOREIGN MINISTER MARIA STENERGARD

"Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has been confirmed dead. This could open a window of opportunities. But there are still many uncertainties remaining.

"Iran's future must belong to the people. But the road there is long. The risk of a spiral of violence in the Middle East remains great."


INDONESIA'S ULEMA MUSLIM CLERICAL COUNCIL

"The Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI) expressed its deepest condolences for the death of Iran's supreme leader, Ali Khamenei, as a result of the Israeli-American attack on February 28.


"The United States, which is playing a central role in managing the Palestinian conflict through the BoP (Board of Peace), faces a major question: is this strategy truly aimed at a just peace, or is it actually strengthening an unequal security architecture and burying Palestinian independence? Therefore, the MUI urges the Indonesian government to revoke its membership from the BoP."


-Reporting by Reuters bureaus; Compiled by Emelia Sithole-Matarise; Editing by David Goodman/Reuters


LONDON - Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was killed in U.S. and Israeli strikes, state media confirmed as another wave of attacks hit the country on Sunday.


Below is international reaction to his death.


EUROPEAN UNION FOREIGN POLICY CHIEF KAJA KALLAS

"The death of Ali Khamenei is a defining moment in Iran’s history. What comes next is uncertain. But there is now an open path to a different Iran, one that its people may have greater freedom to shape."


RUSSIAN PRESIDENT VLADIMIR PUTIN

"Please accept my deep condolences in connection with the murder of the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Republic of Iran, Seyed Ali Khamenei, and members of his family, committed in cynical violation of all norms of human morality and international law."


SWEDISH FOREIGN MINISTER MARIA STENERGARD

"Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has been confirmed dead. This could open a window of opportunities. But there are still many uncertainties remaining.

"Iran's future must belong to the people. But the road there is long. The risk of a spiral of violence in the Middle East remains great."


INDONESIA'S ULEMA MUSLIM CLERICAL COUNCIL

"The Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI) expressed its deepest condolences for the death of Iran's supreme leader, Ali Khamenei, as a result of the Israeli-American attack on February 28.


"The United States, which is playing a central role in managing the Palestinian conflict through the BoP (Board of Peace), faces a major question: is this strategy truly aimed at a just peace, or is it actually strengthening an unequal security architecture and burying Palestinian independence? Therefore, the MUI urges the Indonesian government to revoke its membership from the BoP."


-Reporting by Reuters bureaus; Compiled by Emelia Sithole-Matarise; Editing by David Goodman/Reuters


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