OAN Staff Sophia Flores
5:30 PM – Thursday, March 12, 2026
Four days into his tenure as Iran’s new supreme leader, Mojtaba Khamenei issued his first official message, calling for unity among Iranians while vowing to keep the Strait of Hormuz closed as a “tool of pressure.”
On Iranian State TV, a news anchor read a lengthy message on Thursday from Mojtaba while his image was displayed in the background.
However, the statement did little to quell international speculation, as reports continue to circulate that the new leader remains in a coma, in addition to rumors that he may have had his leg amputated, following the recent American-Israeli airstrikes.
He began his message talking about his now-deceased father, former Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei. He touched on how it would be difficult to follow in his late father’s footsteps, but seeing his father’s lifeless body gave him the motivation he believes the country needs to defend his father’s legacy.
“I had the opportunity to visit [the former Supreme Leader’s] body after his martyrdom. What I saw was a mountain of strength, and I heard that his healthy hand was clenched in a fist,” he said.
“I assure everyone that we will not refrain from avenging the blood of your martyrs,” the new supreme leader wrote in his statement. “The retaliation we have in mind is not limited only to the martyrdom of the great leader of the revolution [Ayatollah Ali Khamenei]; rather, every member of the nation who is martyred by the enemy constitutes a separate case in the file of revenge.”
The address also detailed the strike on the Shajareh Tayyebeh elementary school in Minab, which killed roughly 170 people at the girls’ school in southern Iran. He asserted that the country would “obtain compensation” from its “enemy,” referencing the United States and Israel.
“If it refuses, we will take from its assets to the extent we deem appropriate, and if that is not possible, we will destroy its assets to the same extent,” Mojtaba added.
Pentagon investigators now reportedly believe the school was hit due to outdated intelligence. The building was once part of an adjacent Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) naval base but had been partitioned off as a school for the last 8 years. U.S. Central Command allegedly used coordinates from the Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA) that still listed the school building as a key military structure.
However, the preliminary findings were discovered and only became public after President Donald Trump’s initial claim that the U.S. was not involved.
Trump then appeared to shift his stance, suggesting that Iran possibly “obtained a Tomahawk” and used it on themselves. However, the president also noted that if the report showed that the U.S. was in fact responsible, “I will certainly, whatever the report shows, I’m willing to live with that report,” Trump continued.
In the address, Mojtaba reiterated further that he will be keeping the Strait of Hormuz, a key oil route, closed to global trade. The Hormuz Strait is particularly significant as one of the world’s most critical checkpoints for energy and trade. Approximately 20–25% of the world’s seaborne oil passes through it daily — more than any other strait.
It is also the most narrow major waterway in the region, measuring 21 miles wide.
“The lever of closing the Strait of Hormuz must certainly continue to be used as well. Studies have also been conducted on opening other fronts in which the enemy has little experience and would be highly vulnerable. Their activation will take place, if the wartime situation continues and in accordance with considerations of expediency,” Khamenei said.
Meanwhile, the Iranian State TV announcement comes as reports swirl that the new supreme leader is undergoing intensive care at the Sina University Hospital in Tehran following airstrikes on his country.
“One or two of his legs have been cut off. His liver or stomach has also ruptured. He is apparently in a coma as well,” a source alleged to The Sun outlet. He has not made a public appearance since he assumed his new role.
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