Blitz Bureau
NEW DELHI: Mojtaba Khamenei, son of the late Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, has been selected as Iran’s new Supreme Leader by the country’s Assembly of Experts, according to a latest media report. “The Assembly of Experts elected Ali Khamenei’s son Mojtaba as the next Supreme Leader,” Iran International reported, citing informed sources.
According to the outlet, Mojtaba, 56, has been chosen to take charge of the country’s top leadership position. He is the second-eldest son of Ali Khamenei and has for years been regarded by observers and analysts as a possible successor within Iran’s clerical establishment.
His reported elevation to the highest office in the Islamic Republic is expected to carry political sensitivity, particularly as it comes only days after his father was killed in a series of joint US-Israeli strikes that have since spiralled into a broader armed confrontation across the Middle East.
The Islamic Republic has historically positioned itself as an ideological alternative to hereditary monarchy and has been openly critical of dynastic rule. A transition of authority from father to son could therefore invite scrutiny and raise questions about the system’s adherence to its stated principles.
Iran International further alleged that the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) exerted significant pressure on the clerical body to support Mojtaba’s appointment. “The IRGC heavily pressured the assembled group of clerics to select Mojtaba as the regime’s new leader,” the outlet reported.
