Rumor – An Iranian general allegedly admitted to betraying leader Ali Khamenei and committed suicide during a live broadcast
Analysis
Extremely sensitive and disturbing content has recently begun circulating heavily on messaging platforms and social media. The footage shows a man in front of a camera, visibly shaken, making what appears to be a confession before taking his own life with a firearm during a live broadcast.
According to the captions accompanying the file, the protagonist of the video is a high-ranking officer of the Iranian armed forces. The narrative supporting the post claims that this man was responsible for leaking the exact location of Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ali Khamenei, allowing for precision strikes that resulted in his death.
Regret allegedly led the supposed military officer to an extreme act in front of his followers. Below, you can check the text that accompanies the content (preserving the original context but, obviously, without displaying the images out of respect for the sensitivity of the topic):
Version 1: The general who betrayed the Iranian leader by revealing his exact location repented and committed suicide publicly. I have the video, but I prefer not to publish it. Version 2: Sensitive video: The general who betrayed the Iranian leader by revealing his exact location died suddenly. He took his own life during a live broadcast. Sensitive video.
Fact-Check
To clarify the facts, we will answer the following questions: 1) Did the general who betrayed Iranian leader Ali Khamenei take his own life on a live stream? 2) Who is the person who took their own life on a live stream? 3) Was there any betrayal by a general against Iranian leader Ali Khamenei?
Did the general who betrayed Iranian leader Ali Khamenei take his own life on a live stream?
No. The information connecting the video to an Iranian general or any recent event involving Ali Khamenei’s security is entirely fabricated. The video is real in the sense that it records a tragedy, but the context attributed to it is false. The images have been circulating on the internet since mid-October 2024, long before the most recent rumors regarding the health or whereabouts of the Iranian leader, and have already been used in other contexts of misinformation, such as in false allegations about conflicts in Hebron.
Who is the person who took their own life on a live stream?
The man in the video has been identified as Zahir Aminian. He was a resident of Bana, located in Eastern Kurdistan. The tragic episode occurred on a Monday night in October 2024, during a broadcast on Instagram. Local media outlets and regional human rights profiles, such as News Rojhelat and KRD Online TV, reported the incident at the time, confirming Aminian’s identity and ruling out any connection to Iran’s high military command or international espionage.
Was there any betrayal by a general against Iranian leader Ali Khamenei?
While military and intelligence analysts frequently discuss the possibility of infiltration and the role of informants due to the precision of recent strikes in the region, there is no official record or concrete evidence that a specific general has been identified as a traitor and committed suicide for this reason. International fact-checking sites, such as Boom Live and Admin Media, have already debunked both the leader’s death and the alleged “confession” of the soldier, reinforcing that it is a piece of misleading propaganda.
Conclusion
The video circulating does not show the suicide of an Iranian general, but rather the case of a Kurdish civilian named Zahir Aminian, which occurred in 2024. The story of betrayal and regret was invented to provide context to shocking images and spread misinformation about the stability of the Iranian government.
Fake news ❌
Ps: This article was produced based on reports of viral misinformation. If you wish to suggest a topic for verification, please contact a trusted local fact-checking organization.