After confirming the death of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the government of Iran on March 1 announced 40 days of national mourning, along with seven days of nationwide work suspension, to pay tribute to the late leader.

According to Iranian state media, Ayatollah Khamenei was killed at his office on February 28 while he was “carrying out official duties.” In a statement, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) expressed profound grief over the loss of the Supreme Leader.

Earlier, Reuters quoted a statement by U.S. President Donald Trump confirming that Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, aged 86, had been killed in U.S. and Israeli airstrikes targeting Iran.

A senior Israel official also told Reuters that Khamenei’s body was recovered following the air raids.

The death of Ayatollah Khamenei is expected to have far-reaching consequences for the Islamic Republic, which he led from 1989, a decade after rising to prominence during the theocratic revolution that overthrew Iran’s monarchy and reshaped the Middle East.