Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei’s first public appearance in over three weeks has drawn mixed reactions, with state officials and media hailing his return as a sign of strength while some online reactions from Iranians were dismissive or critical.
The video shows two powerful blasts roughly a second apart just steps away from the main hospital in the Tajrish area, near the capital's bustling Qods Square.
One hits a building, sending a huge cloud of smoke up on the other side of the street, and another lands between cars at an intersection.
The second blast hurls the vehicles and a huge plume of smoke high into the air.
At the time of the explosions, around 15:30 local time on June 15, the street was busy with vendors, shoppers, metro passengers and traffic as many had still not left the capital for safer places.
Other videos of the incident posted earlier on social media showed extensive flooding caused by damage to a major water pipeline from the second blast, adding to the chaos. A three-year-old child reportedly drowned in the flood.
The 12-second footage, released on social media on Thursday, appears to be from a traffic surveillance camera.
The footage emphasized the harm endured by Iranian civilians apart from Israeli strikes which assassinated commanders and nuclear scientists and pummeled key military and nuclear facilities until a June 24 ceasefire.
Iran's health ministry reported 610 people were killed in the conflict and 4,746 injured.
Independent tallies put the toll higher—1,190 according to the US-based human rights group HRANA, which reported military deaths just above 400, with the rest either civilians or yet to be determined.
Verified
Some activists and social media users allege that the video was digitally manipulated or AI-generated.
However, Factnameh, an Iranian fact-checking website, and BBC both deemed the footage genuine, comparing it with other images from the area of the impact.
Victims
Iran reported 18 people killed, including a pregnant woman and her child, and 46 injured in the strike but has not released a full list of victims.
The Israeli military reported the killing of Brigadier General Mohammad Kazemi, chief of the IRGC Intelligence Organization, his deputy Brigadier General Hassan Mohaqeq, and military intelligence officer Mohsen Bagheri on the same day.
Iran confirmed their deaths but neither side has disclosed the exact location of their deaths.
Other incidents with high civilian casualties
On June 23, Israel launched several missiles at Tehran’s Evin Prison, calling the site a “tool of repression.”
Among the dead were two prison officials, Ruhollah Tavasoli and Vahid Heydarpour, as well as Evin's top prosecutor Ali Ghanaatkar. Dozens of detainees, medical staff, visiting families — including a young child — and even a bystander were also killed.
Another Israeli attack on June 24 in Astaneh Ashrafieh in northern Iran killed 16 people, most of them from the same extended family, and completely destroyed several homes.
The bombing targeted nuclear scientist Mohammad-Reza Sadighi, who had survived an earlier Israeli attack in Tehran but lost his 17-year-old son Hamidreza in the airstrike.
Former Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif heaped praise on the leader who had not been seen in public since June 10 before his reappearance at a religious ceremony Saturday night.
“The fearless presence of Ali Khamenei in a traditional public gathering permanently shattered the delusional lies that paid pundits have been pushing. Time to wake up and admit that Iranians never surrender,” he said.
Throughout the three-week gap, social media users widely mocked Khamenei’s invisibility, some likening it to a contradiction of his own past rhetoric.
In a 2005 speech, Khamenei had derided US leaders for “disappearing” after 9/11 and said, “If a bitter experience happens to Iran, we ourselves will don battle garb and stand ready to sacrifice.”
Supporters hail ‘steadfast’ image
Government-aligned figures such as Zarif had earlier insisted that Khamenei’s absence was a leadership tactic, but shifted their tone following the ceremony on Saturday to label it a sign of bravery.
Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, called the reappearance “the most beautiful image I saw upon arriving in Brazil” as he arrived for the Brics summit, and added: “With you, one can brave the seas.”
Mehdi Fazaeli, a member of Khamenei’s office, wrote on X that "the mourning hall exploded", referring to the crowds' excitement for the reappearance of the elusive leader at the mourning ceremony held on the occasion of Ashura.
"The waves of this explosion will sweep through Tel Aviv and the White House. It was an explosion of love, devotion, and union," he said.
Mohsen Rezaei, a senior member of the Expediency Council and a former IRGC commander, portrayed the event as a rallying moment for a nation still suffering the fallout of the 12-day war launched by Israel on June 13.
“When people’s eyes fell on our Leader’s stature, all understood this house’s pillar is firm and no storm can uproot it,” he said.
Iran International editor Morteza Kazemian argued the reappearance is unlikely to restore the status quo of pre-war normalcy, citing the weight of insecurity now surrounding Iran’s defense posture.
“The war showed the country’s skies are defenseless, putting Khamenei squarely among Israel’s potential targets," he said.
Naim Qassem, the Secretary General of Iran's largest regional ally, Hezbollah in Lebanon, praised Khamenei for “his courage, faith, support, and guidance."
Yet while praise flowed from allies, Iranian state institutions remained notably silent on Khamenei’s prolonged absence. Neither his office nor official media offered explanations for his whereabouts during or after the Israeli strikes.
Critics cast ceremony as political theater
Some citizens saw Khamenei’s appearance not as courage, but desperation. A video submitted to Iran International mocked his choice of song, “Ey Iran”, a patriotic anthem rarely embraced by the clerical establishment.
One viewer's message to Iran International said, “If I were him, I’d have preferred to be killed by Israel than to return in this shameful way."
Iranian Nobel laureate and lawyer Shirin Ebadi criticized Khamenei on her Telegram page, saying that while he emerged from his bolthole, the Iranian public who had no shelter from the Israeli barrage were left mourning.
”History will record him as a dictator of the same era as Saddam Hussein, Gaddafi, and Mubarak—but one who lacked even a shred of dignity," Ebadi said.
"Unlike other dictators who at least believed in themselves, he begged for power, and in complete contradiction to the ideals he once shouted from the rooftops, appeared on the eve of Ashura with a smile among a group of hand-picked loyalists saying they were ready to sacrifice their lives for him—while political prisoners and ordinary people had already been sacrificed as his human shields.”
Human rights news agency HRANA said that 1,190 Iranians were killed in the war, 4,475 injured.
Another viewer of Iran International said, “After 20 days, the ‘Great Satan’ crawled out of his hole just to say he wasn’t scared. But we’ve already understood what we needed to—you are a coward and completely spineless.”
“He came out of hiding after 22 days. If I were in his place, I would’ve rather been killed by Israel than show up among the people like this,” said another.
”Since last night, ever since this 'Supreme Mouse' crawled out of his hole, the news has been subtitling it as 'his appearance in public'. But 'public' meant when he used to attend funerals for his commanders or visited missile-struck areas. This wasn’t a public appearance—it was more like a private gathering, where everything on land and in the air had been secured just so this mouse could come out,” said another citizen.
In Israel as news of Khamenei's reemergence broke, the Jerusalem Post called it a "rectifiable mistake" that Israel did not kill Khamenei and his son Mojtaba, a potential successor.
