US top diplomat hints at hidden activity by injured Iranian Supreme Leader

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has said there are indications that Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei is “increasingly engaging at some level” following reports that he was injured at the beginning of the war.

Rubio noted that Khamenei has not appeared in public since the reported incident, suggesting internal constraints on visibility within Iran’s leadership structure, Reuters reports.

“We haven't seen him publicly, and I would imagine, given what's happened to multiple leaders in that system, being very public is probably not something that's recommended for them internally,” he said.

He added, however, that the Iranian leader remains active behind the scenes.

“But that said, I think there are indications out there that he is increasingly engaging at some level, although all of his communications have been in writing and through intermediaries.”

According to sources, Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei suffered severe facial and leg injuries in an airstrike that killed his father at the beginning of the conflict.

By Vafa Guliyeva