Iran’s newly appointed supreme leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, has reportedly sustained injuries but remains “safe and sound,” according to remarks made by Yousef Pezeshkian, a government adviser and son of Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian. The statement, shared on Yousef Pezeshkian’s Telegram channel on Wednesday, provided the first official indication of the cleric’s condition following days of speculation about his absence from public view after assuming Iran’s highest leadership position.

Pezeshkian said he had heard reports that Mojtaba Khamenei had been injured and sought confirmation from contacts with knowledge of the situation. According to those sources, he said, the new supreme leader is safe despite the injuries. The update comes amid growing questions about Khamenei’s whereabouts after he did not make a public appearance or deliver an address following his appointment over the weekend.

The 56-year-old cleric was elevated to the position of supreme leader after his father, Ali Khamenei, was killed in an airstrike during the early stages of the ongoing conflict involving the United States, Israel and Iran. The decision to appoint Mojtaba was taken by the powerful Assembly of Experts, the clerical body responsible for selecting the country’s supreme leader, making him the top political and religious authority in the Islamic Republic.

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Iranian state television earlier described Mojtaba Khamenei as a “wounded veteran” of what it referred to as the Ramadan war, but provided few additional details. According to a report by The New York Times citing three unnamed Iranian officials, the leader reportedly suffered injuries including damage to his legs but remained conscious and alert. The report said he is currently in a highly secure location with limited communication access.

Speculation has circulated that the injuries may have occurred during the same airstrike on a compound in Tehran that killed his father and several family members at the outset of the conflict on February 28. In the capital, authorities have displayed large billboards depicting Mojtaba symbolically receiving the national flag from Ali Khamenei while Iran’s revolutionary founder, Ruhollah Khomeini, looks on.

Security analysts say the new leader is likely to remain out of public view for the time being due to concerns about assassination attempts. Despite the uncertainty surrounding his public appearances, both the Iranian military and the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) have pledged allegiance to him, while allied regional groups have also signaled their support for his leadership.

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