Iran’s supreme leader Ali Khamenei has prepared an escape plan to flee Tehran and seek refuge in Moscow if unrest inside the country spirals beyond the regime’s control, according to an intelligence report shared with the Times of London.
The report says Khamenei, 86, would depart Iran with a small circle of aides and family members—including his son and presumed successor, Mojtaba—if security forces tasked with suppressing protests begin to defect or disobey orders. An intelligence source said the fallback destination would be Russia, where Khamenei is believed to enjoy protection from President Vladimir Putin.
The contingency plan mirrors the flight of former Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad, who escaped to Moscow as his regime collapsed in late 2024. The report says Khamenei’s inner circle has quietly gathered cash and overseas assets to facilitate a rapid exit if necessary.
The revelations come as nationwide protests—driven by economic hardship and soaring inflation—have spread to major Iranian cities, with demonstrators accusing regime forces, including the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, of using live fire and mass arrests to crush dissent. Intelligence assessments cited by the Times describe Khamenei as increasingly isolated, physically weakened, and "obsessed with survival," noting his absence from public view amid the unrest.
U.S. and Israeli strikes last summer weakened Iran's regime by exposing its military and nuclear vulnerabilities. American B-2 bombers dropped bunker-buster munitions on Iran's heavily fortified Fordow nuclear site, rendering the facility inoperable, according to U.S. and Israeli officials. President Donald Trump warned that any effort to restart the program would prompt further U.S. attacks, compounding pressure on a regime already facing widespread unrest.
The mounting pressure on Khamenei follows the U.S. special forces operation in Venezuela that ended in the capture of dictator Nicolás Maduro. Operation Absolute Resolve unfolded on Saturday after months of surveillance tracking Maduro's movements. Maduro faces a litany of charges, including narco-terrorism, weapons possession, and conspiracy to attack the United States. Trump stated that he had not ruled out a follow-up strike on targets in Venezuela.
