Iran names Mojtaba Khamenei as new supreme leader after death of Ali Khamenei

RIYADH, March 9 (Saudi Arabia Breaking News) – Iran has named Mojtaba Khamenei as the country’s new supreme leader following the killing of his father, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, in U.S.-Israeli strikes on February 28, state media reported early Monday.

The appointment was made by the Assembly of Experts, an 88-member body of senior clerics responsible for selecting Iran’s supreme leader.

The assembly has chosen a supreme leader only once before since the establishment of the Islamic Republic in 1979, when Ali Khamenei was selected after the death of Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini more than three decades ago.

U.S. President Donald Trump said on Thursday that he should be involved in the appointment of Iran’s next leader and described the selection of Khamenei’s son as unacceptable.

Mojtaba Khamenei, 56, is the second son of the late supreme leader and is widely considered to wield significant influence behind the scenes. He is known to have close links with the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and its Basij paramilitary force.

He is not a senior cleric and has held no formal role within the Iranian government.

The United States sanctioned Mojtaba Khamenei in 2019, with the U.S. Department of the Treasury accusing him of working closely with commanders of the IRGC-Quds Force and the Basij to advance what Washington described as his father’s regional and domestic policies.

An Israeli source familiar with the matter said Israel targeted Mojtaba Khamenei in a strike last week, though officials believe he was injured but survived the attack.