The failed assassination of wills

On June 27, 1981, Ayatollah Khamenei was targeted in an assassination attempt while delivering a speech at the Abuzar Mosque in Tehran. The occasion was a memorial service for the late Martyr Mostafa Chamran, and the attack occurred as he was answering questions from the public during a segment of his address concerning the status of women in Islam. A bomb, concealed inside a tape recorder placed on the podium, detonated, leaving him critically wounded.

Following the explosion, he was rushed first to a local clinic and then to Baharloo Hospital, where he underwent emergency surgery. The severity of his injuries was so profound that he repeatedly came to the brink of martyrdom, requiring exhaustive efforts by the medical team to save his life. Once his condition was relatively stabilized, he was transferred to the Tehran Heart Hospital for continued treatment. Over the course of his recovery, several surgical procedures were performed on his right hand. However, due to the extensive damage to the nerves and tissues, he permanently lost all motor function in his right hand. The pain and lingering complications of that injury would remain with him for the rest of his life.

During his hospitalization, Imam Khomeini continuously monitored Ayatollah Khamenei’s physical condition. Time and again, he would ask those around him and the doctors about his health, inquiring, "How is Agha Sayyid Ali doing?" When Imam Khomeini’s warm and encouraging message was broadcast over the radio for Ayatollah Khamenei to hear, it left a profound spiritual impact, deeply lifting his spirits and renewing his hope for recovery.

Despite his grueling physical condition and the taxing recovery period, he did not suspend his oversight of national affairs. He constantly sought the latest political, security, and administrative updates from officials and aides, making every effort to follow the country's progress even while confined to his hospital bed.

The photograph above was captured in the hospital courtyard on the day of Ayatollah Khamenei’s discharge upon completing his inpatient treatment. Less than three months after the assassination attempt, he stepped into the 1981 presidential election and was elected President of the Islamic Republic of Iran by a decisive popular mandate.