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A new leader has been chosen to lead Iran after the death of Ayatollah Khamenei.
After the ayatollah’s death in the first wave of US-Israeli strikes last weekend, an interim leadership council was established to govern in his absence and choose a successor.
“The most suitable candidate, approved by the majority of the Assembly of Experts, has been determined,” Mohsen Heydari, a member of the council, said today.
Another member of the council said the choice would probably be opposed by the US and Israel.
“Someone opposed by the enemy is more likely to benefit Iran and Islam,” he added.
Israel has vowed to target Khamenei’s replacement.
In a post on X in Farsi, the Israeli army said,
“After the neutralization of the tyrant Khamenei, the terrorist Iranian regime is trying to rebuild itself and choose a new leader.
“Iran’s Assembly of Experts, which has not convened for decades, will soon gather in the city of Qom. We want to tell you that the State of Israel will continue to pursue any successor and anyone involved in appointing one.
“We warn all those who intend to participate in the meeting to choose a successor that we will not hesitate to target you as well. This is a warning!”
In recent days, Khamenei’s son, Mojtaba, has emerged as a frontrunner; although doubts about his candidacy remain.
The Guardian notes, “His appointment is far from certain as critics would view the move as entrenching a regime accused by rights groups of killing at least 7,000 people in recent months. In addition, a father-to-son succession is also frowned upon within Iran’s Shia clerical establishment, particularly in a republic born from the overthrow of a monarchy in 1979.”
Iran has continued to strike other states in the region in response to the ongoing US-Israeli attacks.
On Sunday, Iranian drones and missiles hit Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Qatar, Bahrain and Kuwait.
Saudi Arabia said it intercepted 15 drones. Strikes in Bahrain caused “material damage” to an important desalination plant.
According to The Guardian, “The recent attacks on Gulf states appear to highlight a clash within Iran’s leadership, contradicting remarks made on Saturday by the president, Masoud Pezeshkian, who apologised to countries on the Arabian peninsula and suggested strikes against them would end, provided their airspace and US bases were not used against Iran.
“According to analysts, Pezeshkian’s pledge not to strike Gulf states exposed rare public rifts within the ruling elite with Iran’s leadership showing signs of strain, as officials of the regime scrambled to explain and reinterpret the president’s words, which appeared to anger the country’s more conservative factions.”
