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3. Global Reactions Emerge After Khamenei’s Killing in U.S.-Israeli Strikes

Statements are emerging from Iran and around the world in response to the killing of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in U.S.–Israeli strikes, with leaders and groups weighing in on the regional and global implications.

Iran’s President Responds

Iran's President Masoud Pezeshkian said Sunday that avenging the killing of supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in U.S.-Israeli strikes was a right and obligation of the Islamic republic.

"The Islamic Republic of Iran considers it its legitimate duty and right to avenge the perpetrators and masterminds of this historic crime," said Pezeshkian in a statement carried by state TV.

"The assassination of the highest political authority of the Islamic Republic of Iran and a prominent leader of Shiism worldwide... is perceived as an open declaration of war against Muslims, and particularly against Shiites, everywhere in the world," Pezeshkian said in a statement carried by state TV.

Hamas Reacts

Hamas on Sunday mourned Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei after his death in what it described as a "heinous" US-Israeli attack.

"We in Hamas mourn the passing of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. He provided all forms of political, diplomatic and military support to our people, our cause, and our resistance," the Palestinian Islamist movement said in a statement.

"The US and the fascist occupation government bear full responsibility for this blatant aggression and heinous crime against the sovereignty of the Islamic Republic of Iran, as well as for its serious repercussions on the security and stability of the region."

Militant group Islamic Jihad, which along with Hamas fought a war against Israel in Gaza for two years, said the killing of Khamenei was a "war crime" committed by the U.S. and Israel in a "treacherous and malicious attack".

United Kindom Reacts

UK Defence Secretary John Healey said Sunday that "few people will mourn" Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, in the British government's first public response to the Iranian supreme leader's death in US-Israeli strikes.

"Iran and the regime he's led for so long, it's a source of evil, murdering its own citizens and sponsoring and exporting terror, including to countries like Britain," Healey told Sky News.

He added that "the concern now, of course, is this regime is lashing out... in an increasingly indiscriminate and widespread way, and people will be really concerned that it's not just military targets".