Revisited: From accidental to absolute leader – who is Ayatollah Khamenei?

Over 2025, every Friday, the Sky News Daily has been profiling a figure in the news – those who are making headlines, creating conversations. During the festive period, we’re revisiting some of those standout profiles – the ones that really got us talking.

In June, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Iran’s often reclusive supreme leader, surfaced to hit back at Donald Trump’s demands for an unconditional surrender.

Khamanei first came to power as President of Iran in 1981, and he was a surprise choice for supreme leader eight years later. But since then, with the help of the Revolutionary Guard he has had almost complete control of Iran and its anti-Israel and anti-American foreign policy agenda.

Sky's Tom Cheshire speaks to Alex Vatanka, founding director of the Iran programme at the Middle East Institute in Washington DC, about how Khamenei is viewed inside Iran and how his policies contributed to the current crisis.

Producer: Soila Apparicio

Editor: Wendy Parker