Hegseth: New Iran leader Mojtaba Khamenei ‘wounded and disfigured’; strike count hits 15,000

Washington: U.S. Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth stated on Friday that he believes Iran’s newly appointed Supreme Leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, sustained significant injuries during recent military operations.

"We know the new so-called, not-so-supreme leader is wounded and likely disfigured," Hegseth told reporters during a press conference.

While the new leader released a written communique on Thursday, he has not made a public appearance since assuming power from his father, Ali Khamenei. The elder Khamenei was killed during the initial bombardment that launched the joint U.S.-Israeli offensive on Feb. 28. While Iranian authorities have acknowledged that the younger Khamenei is injured, they have provided no specifics regarding the nature or severity of his condition.

Hegseth also provided an update on the scale of the 14-day military campaign, revealing that the coalition has hit more than 15,000 targets across Iran.

"Between our air force and that of the Israelis, over 15,000 enemy targets have been struck. That's well over 1,000 a day," Hegseth said. He noted that the operations scheduled for Friday were expected to represent the highest daily volume of strikes since the war commenced.

The Pentagon's remarks suggest that the Iranian leadership remains under intense physical threat as the coalition continues to target command and control centres, as well as nuclear and ballistic missile sites, with increasing frequency.

With inputs from AP