- Iran defies Trump, names Mojtaba Khamenei as Supreme Leader
TEHRAN — Defying direct threats from US President Donald Trump, Iran’s Assembly of Experts yesterday appointed Mojtaba Khamenei—son of the late Ali Khamenei—as the country’s new Supreme Leader.
The appointment ends days of intense uncertainty following the death of the elder Khamenei. While Mojtaba’s name had been frequently circulated as a successor, the move marks a significant escalation in the standoff between Tehran and Washington.
President Trump had previously warned that any leader chosen without his administration’s approval “would not last long.” Iran’s clerical body issued a sharp pushback, asserting that the leadership of the Islamic Republic is an internal matter.
In an official statement, the Assembly of Experts confirmed that Mojtaba Khamenei, 56, was “appointed and introduced as the third leader of the sacred system of the Islamic Republic of Iran, based on a decisive vote.”
The body added that it “did not hesitate for a minute” in its decision, despite what it termed “the brutal aggression of criminal America and the evil Zionist regime.”
The US President, who recently dismissed the younger Khamenei as a “lightweight,” reiterated his stance to ABC News shortly before the announcement:
“If he doesn’t get approval from us, he’s not going to last long.”
Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, responded on NBC’s ‘Meet the Press’, demanding that Trump “apologise to the people of the region” for instigating the conflict and insisting that Iran would “allow nobody to interfere in our domestic affairs.”
The political succession took place against a backdrop of devastating military strikes. Overnight, Israeli forces targeted five oil facilities in and around Tehran, killing at least four people and sending plumes of toxic, acrid smoke across the capital.
A dark haze has settled over the city of 10 million, with officials warning that the air is “unbreathable.”
Fuel distribution has been “temporarily interrupted,” leading to reports of dry gas stations and widespread panic.
Residents reported blown-out windows from the force of the blasts. One 35-year-old Tehran resident told reporters, “I can’t even go out for daily shopping… the air has become unbreathable.”
As the war enters its ninth day, the Revolutionary Guards—to whom Mojtaba Khamenei is closely linked—claimed they possess enough drone and missile supplies to sustain the conflict for six months.
The violence continues to spread across the Middle East: several blasts were reported over Tel Aviv following a salvo of Iranian missiles; six people were wounded in central Israel. Two persons were killed in Al Kharj province by a “military projectile.”
Attacks targeted fuel tanks at Kuwait International Airport and a desalination plant in Bahrain.
Iran’s Health Ministry reported that 1,200 civilians have been killed to date, while Lebanon reported 394 deaths, including 83 children, since being drawn into the war a week ago.
Despite the ongoing strikes, President Trump insisted the war is “all but won,” though he refused to rule out the deployment of American ground troops.
Meanwhile, Iranian spokesperson Ali Mohammad Naini warned that Tehran was prepared to deploy “advanced, long-range missiles” in the coming days.
From the Vatican, Pope Leo XIV issued a plea for peace yesterday, praying “that the roar of the bombs may cease, the weapons may fall silent, and a space for dialogue may open.”
The selection of Mojtaba, said to be more radical than his lateerubbishes Iran’s claim to being a republic. The regime has been opposed to monarchism all the while, but allowing son to succeed father belies what their position on succession has always been.
