Iran names Khamenei’s son as new supreme leader after father’s killing
Al Jazeera
Mojtaba Khamenei will now be charged with leading Islamic Republic through the biggest crisis in its 47-year history.
Iran has named Mojtaba Khamenei as its new Supreme Leader, just over a week after the assassination of his father, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, in United States-Israeli strikes that plunged the entire region into a sprawling war.
The 56-year-old, who will now be charged with leading the Islamic Republic through the biggest crisis in its 47-year history, was named by clerics as his father’s successor on Sunday.
Mojtaba Khamenei has never run for office or been subjected to a public vote, but has for decades been a highly influential figure in the inner circle of the supreme leader, cultivating deep ties to the powerful Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).
In recent years, he has increasingly been touted as a top potential replacement for his father.
His selection could be a sign that more hardline factions in Iran’s establishment retain power, and could indicate that the government has little desire to agree to a deal or negotiations in the short term as the war is in its second week.
Iranian Kurdish armed groups have reportedly consulted with the US in recent days about whether to attack Iran.
US president says on a scale of one to 10, he would rate the war’s success at 15, as Iran details civilian sites hit.
A funeral for the country’s Supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has been postponed amid explosions.
Tens of thousands have fled their homes in Lebanon’s south as Israel issues forced evacuation order for entire area.
UN migration agency warns that escalating violence on Afghanistan-Pakistan border risks further displacement.
Such a plan could further destabilise Iran rather than promote peace in the country, experts say.
Iranian retaliatory strikes continue with drone and missile attacks as conflict spreads through Gulf nations.
Gulf states face an impossible choice after Iranian attacks: remain passive, or risk being seen as fighting with Israel.
Hezbollah says its attack is in response to the killing of Iran’s Khamenei and ‘in defence of Lebanon and its people’.
President Masoud Pezeshkian condemns killing of Iran’s supreme leader as ‘a great crime’, according to his office.
Iran confirms targeting US bases across the Middle East.