Iran declares 40 days of mourning and a 7-day official holiday following the killing of Khamenei and vows to respond

On Sunday, Iran announced a 40-day period of mourning and a seven-day official holiday following the killing of Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ali Khamenei, at the age of 86, who had been in power since 1989.

The Iranian government issued an official statement announcing the killing of Khamenei, pledging that “this heinous crime will not remain unpunished,” following the attack for which it blamed the United States and Israel.

For its part, the Iranian Revolutionary Guard announced that “the most severe operation against Israeli and American bases will begin.”

US President Donald Trump said hours ago that Khamenei was killed in a joint US-Israeli operation targeting Iran.