Iran's Assembly of Experts has elected Mojtaba Khamenei, the son of former Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, as the future leader of the Islamic Republic, exiled publication Iran International announced on Tuesday. Mojtaba Khamenei, the second son of the ayatollah killed in airstrikes carried out by the US and Israel, is considered aligned with the radical conservative camp in Iran, just like his father, writes the Israeli publication Ynet.
Middle East war, day 4: US diplomatic missions closed due to Iranian strikes / Britain and France send forces to Cyprus / Trump praises the operation / A new leader elected in Tehran
Mojtaba Khamenei (56) has publicly advocated repression of regime opponents in Iran and supported a firm policy towards external enemies.
A mid-ranking cleric who teaches Shia theology at a seminary in Iran's religious heartland of Qom, Mojtaba has never held an official position in government, but is known for the considerable influence he has wielded so far behind the scenes.
Mojtaba Khamenei is known to have cultivated close ties with the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), the country's most powerful military institution, as well as the Basij volunteer paramilitary force.
Analysts outside Iran have previously described Mojtaba as a “watchman” in his father's inner circle. In 2019, the United States imposed sanctions on Mojtaba Khamenei, stating that although he did not hold an official position, he effectively “represented” the supreme leader.
Despite his name appearing repeatedly over the years as a possible successor, Mojtaba was not generally considered a leading candidate.
Observers have noted that his promotion could be perceived as a hereditary transfer of power – reminiscent of the monarchy overthrown in the 1979 Islamic Revolution – and that he is not considered a high-ranking cleric by traditional standards for the post.
In fact, the succession from father to son is viewed with disapproval within the Shiite Muslim clergy and, in particular, in an Islamic republic that was born after the overthrow of a widely detested monarchy, notes CNN.
Israeli officials have previously said that Mojtaba Khamenei does not appear to have a prominent public image and have suggested that Iranian authorities have tried to keep him “hidden”.
In January, Bloomberg reported that Motjaba Khamenei oversees an investment empire, with multiple sources saying the ayatollah's son has access to Swiss bank accounts and luxury British properties worth more than $100 million, despite US sanctions against him in 2019.
According to Iran's Constitution, the Supreme Leader is elected by the Assembly of Experts, whose members are elected but must first be approved by the Guardian Council, a body appointed directly or indirectly by the Supreme Leader. The position holds ultimate authority over the military, judiciary and key institutions of the Islamic state.
So far, there has been no immediate confirmation from Iranian state media about the choice of Mojtaba Khamenei as his father's successor as head of state.
The exiled Iranian publication that reported the information stated that the vote in the Assembly of Experts took place under pressure from the Revolutionary Guard.
Voting to elect Khamenei's successor held online
Iran's Assembly of Experts, the body tasked with electing the country's next supreme leader, met virtually on Tuesday, according to Iran's Fars news agency.
The elected body, made up of 88 senior clerics, held meetings remotely after Israel attacked the Assembly's compounds this week.
State media reported that US and Israeli strikes hit the Assembly of Experts complex in Tehran on Monday, and on Tuesday, Israeli military spokeswoman Effie Defrin confirmed a new attack on the compound in Qom.
VIDEO Key building near Tehran, where senior clerics were gathering for the election of Iran's new supreme leader, destroyed in a bombing
“The results of the attack are still being examined. If there are confirmed results, we will provide updated information accordingly,” Defrin said in a press conference, quoted by CNN and News.ro.
The Fars agency wrote that at the time of the Israeli attack, no meeting of the Assembly was taking place in the building in Qom, a town south of Tehran.
Tuesday's attack came as, according to Fars, the Assembly of Experts was in the “final stage” of electing a new supreme leader of Iran.
Ayatollah Ali Khamenei had no officially declared successor. With the assassination of Khamenei, his powers had been temporarily transferred, pending the election of a new supreme leader, to a three-person council – a triumvirate, made up of the president, the head of the judiciary and a high-ranking cleric from the Guardian Council.
The Guardian Council is a body made up of 12 jurists that oversees the activities of the Iranian parliament.
President Donald Trump said Tuesday that most of the Iranian officials Washington considered to lead Iran after the war ended have been killed.
