Ex-President Ranil expresses condolences over the passing of Iran’s Supreme Leader
March 5, 2026 10:47 am
Former President Ranil Wickremesinghe today (05) visited the Embassy of Iran in Colombo to express condolences over the passing of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the Supreme Leader of Iran.
A special program has been organized at the Iranian Embassy in Colombo for people to convey their condolences regarding the Iranian leader’s death.
Accordingly, former President Ranil Wickremesinghe visited the embassy and signed a condolence message.
Subsequently, the former President also expressed his condolences to the officials of the embassy.
Yesterday, Foreign Minister Vijitha Heath visited the Iranian Embassy in Colombo to offer his condolences to the Islamic Republic of Iran on the recent passing of its Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
Iranian state media on Sunday confirmed that Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was killed at his office in the Israeli-US attacks on Iran.
A 40-day mourning period for the longtime Iranian leader was announced.
The confirmation came after Iran’s Tasnim and Mehr news agencies initially reported that Khamenei remained “steadfast and firm in commanding the field”.
US President Donald Trump wrote in a post on his Truth Social platform that 86-year-old Khamenei was killed in the joint US-Israeli strikes, which began early on Saturday.
“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,” Trump wrote.
“This is the single greatest chance for the Iranian people to take back their Country,” he said. “Hopefully, the IRGC [Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps] and Police will peacefully merge with the Iranian Patriots.”
Khamenei has been Iran’s supreme leader since 1989, succeeding the founder of the post-shah Iran, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, who steered Iran’s 1979 revolution.
The supreme leader holds ultimate authority over all branches of government, the military and the judiciary, while also acting as the country’s spiritual leader.
