In a significant development, Iran’s Assembly of Experts has announced Mojtaba Khamenei, son of the late Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, as the new supreme leader, as reported by Iranian state television.

Mojtaba Khamenei, aged 56, is the second-eldest child of the late Ayatollah Khamenei. He was born in the city of Mashhad in 1969.

His formative years aligned with his father’s emergence as a revolutionary leader challenging the rule of Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi.

An archival image captures Mojtaba Khamenei participating in a Jerusalem Day demonstration in Tehran. (Photo by Morteza Nikoubazl/NurPhoto via Getty Images)

Following the 1979 Islamic Revolution, Ali Khamenei transitioned from a dissident cleric to a prominent figure in the new government, assuming roles such as deputy defense minister.

The Khamenei family relocated from Mashhad to Tehran, where Mojtaba pursued his education at Alavi High School, an institution known for shaping Iran’s future political and religious leaders.

There, he received a general and religious education and graduated in 1987. In 1989, after the death of Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, Ali Khamenei was appointed supreme leader.

Large crowds gather at Enghelab Square in Tehran, Monday, after Iranian state TV announced that Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was killed in an Israeli strike. (Fatemeh Bahrami/Anadolu via Getty Images)

That same year, Mojtaba began his formal clerical studies in Tehran. He studied under his father as well as Mahmoud Hashemi Shahroudi, who later served as Iran’s chief justice.

Over the years, Mojtaba was seen constantly with his father and was also regarded as an influential figure behind the scenes.

In an Axios interview last week, when asked about reports suggesting Mojtaba Khamenei was the new supreme leader, President Donald Trump said, “Khamenei’s son is unacceptable to me. We want someone who will bring harmony and peace to Iran.” Trump also said “They are wasting their time. Khamenei’s son is a lightweight. I have to be involved in the appointment, like with Delcy [Rodriguez] in Venezuela.”

In 2019, the U.S. sanctioned Mojtaba Khamenei under Executive Order 13867. The U.S. Treasury Department stated that he had been “representing the supreme leader in an official capacity despite never being elected or appointed to a government position aside from work in the office of his father.” 

Iran’s Supreme Leader Khamenei makes first public appearance in weeks with fresh U.S. threats. (Office of the Iranian Supreme Leader Credit/The Associated Press)

The Treasury also said that the supreme leader had delegated part of his leadership responsibilities to Mojtaba. 

It said he worked closely with commanders of the IRGC’s Quds Force and the Basij Resistance Force, positioning him as a key player in both domestic and international security affairs.

Mojtaba is married to the daughter of former Iranian Parliament Speaker Gholam Ali Haddad-Adel.

Among Ali Khamenei’s sons, he is considered the most powerful and politically influential, according to reports.

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