Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) has vowed to punish the "murderers" of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, following the confirmation of his death by state television, and promised that the response will be the "most ferocious offensive operation in history" against the US and Israel.
In a statement posted on its official Telegram page, the IRGC said, "The hand of revenge of the Iranian nation for a severe, decisive and regrettable punishment for the murderers of the Imam of the Ummah will not let go of them."
It further said that the IRGC, the Armed Forces, and the Basij forces will "powerfully continue the path of their leader in defending his legacy, standing firm against internal and external plots and delivering what it described as a lesson-giving punishment to aggressors against the Islamic homeland."
The Iranian Cabinet has also warned that the "great crime will never go unanswered."
Khamenei was killed in an epochal attack by the US and Israel, marking an inflexion point in the 46-year Shia-theocratic rule, as Tehran's retaliation set off conflagrations in a swath of the Middle East.
US President Donald Trump announced on Saturday the killing of the 86-year-old cleric, ending his iron-fisted rule over Iran for 36 years.
Trump said on Truth Social, "He was unable to avoid our Intelligence and Highly Sophisticated Tracking Systems and, working closely with Israel, there was not a thing he, or the other leaders that have been killed along with him, could do."
Iran has not confirmed his death, and the nation's future remained murky with no word as of Sunday evening about who is filling the leadership void, although the country has a rank of civilian and military leaders.
It was not known if other leaders, civilian and military, were killed.
As soon as the US-Israel attack began, Tehran retaliated with a fusillade of drones and missiles against Israel, Qatar, Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates UAE), Jordan, and Kuwait.
Trump unleashed the attack shortly after midnight in Washington — and daytime in Iran -- two days after inconclusive negotiations in Geneva facilitated by Oman.
On Friday, Trump said that he was "unhappy" that he was not getting what the US wanted -- a complete end to uranium enrichment.
Oman and Iran had claimed progress in the talks.
Iran was convulsed last month by public protests sparked by inflation that defied the regime but was brutally put down by the government, reportedly killing thousands.
Trump escalated the confrontation with Iran from ending its nuclear programme to regime change, unleashing the attack to decapitate the religio-political and military leadership.
There were reports with video on X that some Iranians celebrated the reported death of Khamenei, but there were no indications of a mass uprising.
The toll of the attacks was also unclear.
--IANS