Weeks before his death, Iran’s 86-year-old Supreme Leader heard shouts of ‘Death to Khamenei’ and unleashed a bloody crackdown

In one of his final public displays of power, Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei unleashed the bloodiest crackdown of his nearly four-decade rule to crush nationwide protests in which people dared to shout “Death to Khamenei.”

Now a U.S. or Israeli military strike has sent Iran spinning into the unknown. The 86-year-old supreme leader is dead, with no designated successor.

Iranian state media confirmed his death without giving details early Sunday, hours after President...