Washington: U.S. Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth said Friday that Iran’s newly installed supreme leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, had been wounded and forced into hiding as the country’s military leadership struggled amid intense American strikes.
Speaking at a Pentagon briefing, Hegseth said Iran’s leadership was under growing pressure as the military campaign continued.
“Iran’s leadership is in no better shape, desperate and hiding,” he said.
Hegseth said the newly appointed leader had issued a written statement calling for unity but had not appeared publicly. “We know the new so-called not-so Supreme leader is wounded and likely disfigured,” Hegseth said.
“He put out a statement yesterday… but there was no voice, and there was no video. It was a written statement.”
The defence secretary questioned why the leader had not addressed the country directly despite access to communication tools.
“Iran has plenty of cameras and plenty of voice recorders. Why a written statement? I think you know why,” he said.
“He’s scared. He’s injured. He’s on the run, and he lacks legitimacy.”
Hegseth also said Iran’s leadership structure appeared increasingly uncertain as the conflict intensified.
“Who’s in charge? Iran may not even know with every passing hour,” he said.
The remarks came as U.S. officials said American forces had struck thousands of targets across Iran during the military campaign.
Hegseth argued that the strikes had severely weakened Iran’s armed forces and disrupted the country’s military command structure.
“The military capabilities of their regime are crumbling,” he said.
“They can barely communicate, let alone coordinate.”
He added that Iranian leaders had moved underground and were attempting to avoid being targeted.
“Iran’s leaders are hiding in bunkers and moving into civilian areas,” he said.
The Pentagon has repeatedly said the goal of the military campaign is to destroy Iran’s missile capabilities, degrade its naval power and prevent Tehran from acquiring a nuclear weapon.
Iran has not publicly confirmed claims made by the U.S. Defence Secretary regarding the condition of its leadership.