Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Sunday that the killing of Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and members of his family was a “cynical” murder that violated all the norms of human morality and international law.

“Please accept my deep condolences in connection with the murder of the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Republic of Iran, Seyed Ali Khamenei, and members of his family, committed in cynical violation of all norms of human morality and international law,” Putin said in a note to Iranian counterpart Masoud Pezeshkian released by the Kremlin.

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“In our country, Ayatollah Khamenei will be remembered as an outstanding statesman who made a huge personal contribution to the development of friendly Russian-Iranian relations and bringing them to the level of a comprehensive strategic partnership,” Putin said.

“I ask you to convey my most sincere sympathy and support to the family and friends of the Supreme Leader, the government and the entire people of Iran,” he added.

On Saturday, the UN Security Council scheduled an emergency meeting, called at the request of Bahrain and France, in the wake of strikes launched by Israel and the United States against Iran.

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At the meeting, Russia’s Foreign Ministry called the strikes “a pre-planned and unprovoked act of armed aggression against a sovereign and independent UN member state.” The ministry accused Washington and Tel Aviv of “hiding behind” concerns about Iran’s nuclear program while actually pursuing regime change.

A day earlier, the US and Israel jointly launched strikes on Iran that pushed the Middle East into renewed military confrontation and further dimmed hopes for a diplomatic solution to the West’s long-standing effort to denuclearise Iran, despite Tehran’s repeated assertions that it will not pursue nuclear weapons.

In response, Iran targeted Israel and US bases in the Middle East. Explosions were reported in Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Qatar.

Later, Iranian state media confirmed that Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has been killed in strikes by Israel and the US, and announced 40 days of public mourning in the Islamic Republic.

Hours after the United States and Israel said that an air strike killed Ayatollah Ali Khamenei as part of the most ambitious series of attacks on Iran in decades, Iranian state media confirmed the 86-year-old leader’s death on Saturday.

US President Donald Trump said the air strikes, launched on Saturday, on Iranian targets were aimed at ending a decades-long threat from Iran and ensuring it could not develop a nuclear weapon as he sought to justify a risky gambit that seemed to go against his professed opposition to American involvement in complex overseas conflicts.