TEHRAN, Mar 11 (AFP): Iran's new supreme leader Mojtaba Khamenei is "safe and sound" despite reports of an injury during the war with Israel and the United States, said the son of the Iranian president on Wednesday.
"I heard news that Mr Mojtaba Khamenei had been injured. I have asked some friends who had connections. They told me that, thank God, he is safe and sound," said Yousef Pezeshkian, who is also a government adviser, in a post on his Telegram channel.
State television had called Khamenei a "wounded veteran of the Ramadan war" but never specified his injury.
Iran has launched a fresh wave of missile and drone strikes targeting Israeli and US-linked sites across the Middle East, with Tehran claiming it also struck a major US military facility in Kuwait, according to media reports.
Iranian state media said the latest barrage was the "most intense and heaviest" since the conflict began, AFP reported.
Israel said it detected missiles launched from Iran earlier, prompting alerts in several areas. However, Israeli authorities later said it was safe for citizens to leave shelters.
Regional tensions also triggered defensive responses in neighbouring countries.
Saudi Arabia said its air defence systems intercepted and destroyed two drones that were heading towards an oil field.
Warning sirens were also heard in Bahrain, which hosts the largest US air base in the Middle East.
Meanwhile, Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) claimed it fired four missiles at the headquarters of US forces in the region.
According to the IRGC, two of the missiles targeted Camp Arifjan, a major US military installation in Kuwait.
There was no immediate confirmation from US or Kuwaiti authorities regarding the claimed strike.
Three US B-1 bombers have arrived at the Royal Air Force base in Fairford, Gloucestershire, which regularly hosts US Air Force bomber deployments.
The deployment follows a decision by UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer to allow the United States to use British bases, including RAF Fairford, for what London called "defensive" operations related to the ongoing conflict with Iran, reports Al Jazeera.
The newly arrived bombers joined other US military aircraft already stationed at the base after a B-1 Lancer landed on Friday, followed by two more on Saturday.
