Trump Calls Iran’s New Leader ‘Wounded and Disfigured’ as Regional War Spirals Out of Control

Donald Trump and his defence secretary amplified claims Friday that Iran’s newly installed supreme leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, had been wounded and disfigured in one of the ongoing airstrikes, pointing to the absence of any video or audio message as proof. Trump himself used the occasion to deploy some of his harshest language yet against Iranian leadership, calling them “deranged scumbags” and vowing that strikes would only get harder in the coming days. The remarks came as US and Israeli jets conducted relentless bombing raids over Tehran and surrounding areas.
The war was sparked by Israel’s targeted killing of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who had led Iran for 37 years and whose death left the country’s political structure in disarray. Mojtaba Khamenei was installed as the new supreme leader but quickly went into hiding underground according to US officials. His Thursday written statement, in which he called for unity and vowed to continue fighting, was dismissed by Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth as “weak” and lacking credibility without an accompanying visual or audio element.
Israel reported more than 200 strikes in the previous 24-hour period alone, targeting missile launchers, weapons production sites, and air defence infrastructure across Iran. The combined US-Israeli count of enemy targets struck exceeded 15,000, with the Kharg Island operation being described by Trump as one of the most powerful bombing raids in the entire history of the Middle East. US forces specifically destroyed every military installation on the island, which serves as Iran’s primary petroleum export terminal.
The conflict’s reach extended far beyond Iran and Israel, touching virtually every country in the region. Saudi Arabia intercepted close to 50 Iranian drones in a single day. Explosions were heard in Doha after Qatar issued evacuation warnings for parts of the city. Debris from an intercepted strike damaged a building at the Dubai International Financial Centre. In Lebanon, over 600 people have been killed and 800,000 displaced, with at least eight more dying Friday in an Israeli strike on Sidon.
The United States and its allies have not been immune to losses either. Six American service members died in a crash involving a tanker aircraft used for mid-air refuelling over Iraq. France lost a soldier in an Iraqi drone attack by a pro-Iranian militia. Trump acknowledged these losses while insisting the campaign would not slow down, and warned Iran that any interference with Strait of Hormuz shipping would bring immediate consequences for its oil infrastructure at Kharg Island.