“Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei became the third leader of the Islamic Revolution in Iran according to the results of the vote of the Assembly of Experts,” the statement said.
🔴 آیت الله سیدمجتبی خامنهای با رأی مجلس خبرگان سومین رهبر انقلاب اسلامی ایران شد.
— خبرگزاری فارس (@FarsNews_Agency) March 8, 2026
Iran International, citing a statement by the Assembly of Experts tasked with selecting Iran's next Supreme Leader, also announced the appointment of Iran's Supreme Leader. The decisive vote took place during an extraordinary session on March 8. It called on the people of Iran, in particular “the elite and intellectuals of seminaries and universities,” to swear allegiance to the new leadership and “maintain unity around the axis of trusteeship.” According to media reports, the Speaker of the Iranian Parliament, Mohammad-Bagher Ghalibaf, has already sworn allegiance to Mojtab Khamenei, and the Iranian armed forces, after the oath, promised more powerful resistance to enemies.
CNN, citing Iranian media, reported that on the morning of that day, a member of Iran's Assembly of Experts said that “Khamenei's name as the leader of Iran will continue,” although he did not directly point to Mojtaba. The final decision was not announced then, but, according to a representative of the body, the issue of determining leadership had already been resolved.
Later, the channel wrote about the appointment of the son of the deceased Ayatollah to replace his father, noting that discussions on the candidacy of Mojtab Khamenei were “lengthy” and his election as the Supreme Leader of Iran was “unanimous.”
Context
On February 28, as part of the US and Israeli operation against Iran, Israeli fighter jets dropped dozens of bombs on Khamenei’s residence and eliminated him along with a group of representatives of the country’s leadership.
The GORDON publication told what the Ayatollah was like, ruling Iran for almost four decades. It also collected information on how the US and Israel managed to track down Khamenei.
The three-day farewell to Khamenei was supposed to begin on March 4 at the Imam Khomeini Mausoleum complex in Tehran, but he postponed. The reason given by the authorities was “numerous requests” from residents of different provinces to give them the opportunity to attend the funeral. A new date has not yet been announced.
In a telephone interview Axios, published on March 5, Trump said that wants to personally take part in choosing Iran's next leader He admitted that he is the likely successor Khamenei there is his son Mojtaba Khamenei, but noted that he considers this option unacceptable.
In an interview with ABC News published on March 8, Trump said Iran's new supreme leader would not be able to hold on to power for long without US approval.
