Mojtaba Khamenei, son of the late Ali Khamenei, has been appointed as the new supreme leader of Iran, a pivotal role within the Islamic Republic. This decision marks a significant moment in Iran’s political landscape, with Mojtaba stepping into the position previously held by his father.

The announcement was made by the Assembly of Experts, Iran’s top clerical body, shortly after midnight on Monday. Mojtaba’s appointment comes amidst a pool of potential candidates, including Alireza Arafi, a member of the interim council, hardliner Mohsen Araki, and Hassan Khomeini, the grandson of the Islamic Republic’s founder.

Ultimately, the assembly chose 56-year-old Mojtaba Khamenei, despite a previous stance by his father against hereditary leadership. This decision harks back to the 1979 Islamic revolution, which ended a long-standing royal dynasty led by the shah.

Ayatollah Mohsen Heidari Alekasir, a council member, mentioned in a video that the selection was guided by Ali Khamenei’s belief that the supreme leader should be “hated by the enemy.” Heidari Alekasir cited the mention of Mojtaba’s name by “the Great Satan,” referring to the United States, as evidence of his suitability.

This appointment was met with international attention, particularly from the United States. Just days prior, former President Donald Trump expressed his disapproval of Mojtaba as Iran’s new leader, describing him as an “unacceptable” choice. This statement underscores the global implications of Iran’s leadership transition.

“Even the Great Satan (US) has mentioned his name”, Heidari Alekasir said of the chosen successor, days after US President Donald Trump said Mojtaba was an “unacceptable” choice for him.

Father’s ‘gatekeeper’

Born on 8 September 1969, in the holy city of Mashhad in eastern Iran, Mojtaba Khamenei is one of six children of the late supreme leader.

Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was killed aged 86 just over a week ago in Tehran during the first wave of US-Israeli air strikes that triggered the war in the Middle East.

Because of his discretion at official ceremonies and in the media, Mojtaba’s true influence has been the subject of intense speculation for years among the Iranian population as well as in diplomatic circles.

He is the only child of the former supreme leader to hold a public position, despite having no official post.

The cleric, who has a salt-and-pepper beard and the black turban of a sayyed — indicating his family traces its lineage to the Prophet Mohammad — has been presented by some as acting behind the scenes to pull strings at the heart of power in Iran.

He is regarded as close to conservatives, notably because of his ties with the Revolutionary Guards (IRGC), the ideological arm of the Islamic republic’s military.

That relationship dates back to his service in a combat unit at the end of the war between Iraq and Iran that lasted from 1980 to 1988.

His close ties with IRGC give him added leverage across Iran’s political and security apparatus and he has built up influence behind the scenes as his father’s “gatekeeper”, sources familiar with the matter said.

US sanctions and security force links

The US Treasury Department imposed sanctions on Mojtaba Khamenei in 2019 during President Trump’s first term, saying he represented the supreme leader “despite never being elected or appointed to a government position aside from work in the office of his father”.

Ali Khamenei had “delegated a part of his leadership responsibilities” to his son, “who worked closely” with Iranian security forces “to advance his father’s destabilising regional ambitions and oppressive domestic objectives”, the Treasury said.

Opponents have notably accused him of playing a role in the violent crackdown that followed the re-election of ultra-conservative president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in 2009, which triggered a vast protest movement.

According to an investigation by the Bloomberg news organisation, which cited anonymous sources and Western intelligence agency reports, Mojtaba Khamenei has amassed wealth estimated at more than $100 million.

Money from oil sales had been channelled into investments in luxury British real estate, hotels in Europe and property in Dubai through shell companies in tax havens, according to the investigation.

On the religious front, Mojtaba Khamenei studied theology in the holy city of Qom, south of Tehran, where he also taught.

He attained the rank of Hujjat al-Islam, a title given to mid-ranking clerics, below that of Ayatollah held by his father and by revolutionary leader Ruhollah Khomeini.

His wife, Zahra Haddad-Adel, daughter of a former speaker of parliament, also died in the US-Israeli strikes that killed the supreme leader, according to Iranian authorities.

Israel has issued a stark warning to the new supreme leader and whoever selected him, saying “the hand of the State of Israel will continue to follow any successor and anyone who seeks to appoint a successor”.

The Assembly of Experts has 88 members who are elected every eight years.

It has only overseen one leadership transition process to date, when Ali Khamenei was selected in 1989 following the death of Khomeini.

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