Iran Names New Supreme Leader as War With U.S. and Israel Escalates

Over a week after the death of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in U.S.-Israeli strikes, Iran has named its next supreme leader. Khamenei’s son, Mojtaba Khamenei, has been chosen as the next leader of the country by the Assembly of Experts, an 88-member clerical body that appoints Iran's supreme leader.

The 56-year-old is considered a staunch hardliner, and analysts believe his selection could push the ongoing war toward further escalation. Trump had already made it clear that Mojtaba’s selection as Iranian supreme leader would be unacceptable to him.

Trump said in a statement to Axios on March 5, “Khamenei’s son is a lightweight. I have to be involved in the appointment, like with Delcy [Rodriguez] in Venezuela...Khamenei’s son is unacceptable to me. We want someone that will bring harmony and peace to Iran.”

Following Mojtaba’s selection, Trump again expressed his dissatisfaction, telling Fox News, “I am not happy.” Meanwhile, Israel previously vowed to target and eliminate anyone chosen as the next supreme leader.

Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz issued a warning on March 4, saying, “Every leader appointed by the Iranian terror regime to continue and lead the plan to destroy Israel, to threaten the United States and the free world... will be an unequivocal target for elimination. It does not matter what his name is or the place where he hides.”

Born in 1969, Mojtaba is the second son of Ayatollah Khamenei. He was twenty-years-old when his father became Iran’s supreme leader in 1989. After finishing high school, he joined the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) in 1987 and is still said to have close ties with the military organization.

Mojtaba never held an elected office in the Iranian government prior to his appointment as supreme leader. However, he wielded significant influence in his father’s office and acted as an unofficial chief of staff for the former supreme leader. Meanwhile, he became fairly popular among the people of Iran.

In 2019, the U.S. Department of the Treasury sanctioned him to target the inner circle of the supreme leader’s office. Two years later, Mojtaba’s supporters in Iran were seen distributing posters portraying him as the country's next leader.

Unlike his father, Mojtaba has assumed the highest political position in Iran during a period of intense regional conflict. Since the beginning of Operation Epic Fury on February 28, over 1200 people have died in Iran, including key members of the country's leadership.

Apart from military facilities and warships, Iran’s major oil depots have also been hit by the U.S. and Israel. The strikes in Tehran caused massive fires that burned for hours and covered parts of the city in a cloud of toxic smoke.

At the same time, Iran continues to launch ballistic missiles towards Tel Aviv, and the IRGC is targeting U.S. military assets across the region. With the selection of Mojtaba as the new supreme leader, the regime has signaled that it will continue to retaliate fiercely against the strikes.