Mojtaba’s appointment is expected to anger Donald Trump, who has previously stated that Washington should play a role in choosing the leader.
Iran on Monday appointed Mojtaba Khamenei as supreme leader, replacing his father, Ali Khamenei. This indicates that hardliners remain firmly entrenched in Tehran, even a week after the conflict with the US and Israel.
Mojtaba, a mid-ranking cleric with influence in Iran’s security forces and a large business network under his father, was seen as a frontrunner in the assembly before the vote. The assembly is a body of 88 clerics tasked with choosing a new leader after Ali Khamenei.
In a statement issued after midnight, Tehran Time, the assembly said, “The Assembly of Experts has, by a crucial vote, appointed Ayatollah Seyyed Mojtaba Hosseini Khamenei as the third leader of the Islamic Republic of Iran’s holy system.”
This position gives Mojtaba the final say on all matters of state in the Islamic Republic.
Mojtaba’s appointment is likely to anger US President Donald Trump, who said on Sunday that Washington should have a say in the selection. “If he doesn’t get our approval, he won’t last long,” he told ABC News. Before the announcement, Israel threatened to target whoever is chosen.
Mojtaba’s father, Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, was killed in one of the first attacks against Iran more than a week ago.
The US military reported on Sunday that a seventh American had died from wounds sustained in Iran’s initial retaliatory strike a week ago. This incident occurred a day after Trump took responsibility for bringing back the bodies of six more killed to the United States.
According to Iran’s UN ambassador, at least 1,332 Iranian civilians have been killed and thousands injured in US-Israeli attacks.
As Trump pressed for “unconditional surrender,” Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf said Tehran does not want a ceasefire and will punish the attackers.
Israel continued to target prominent Iranian figures, including Abolqasem Babaian, the recently appointed head of the Supreme Leader’s Military Office. He said he was killed in Saturday’s attack.
Black smoke hangs over Tehran
Thick black smoke hung over Tehran on Sunday as fighting escalated into the ninth day of the US-Israeli campaign against Iran. Residents said the night sky was lit up with orange flames following attacks on oil storage facilities.
Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmail Baghaei said the large-scale attack represents a “dangerous new phase” in the conflict and constitutes a war crime.
“By targeting fuel depots, the attackers are releasing dangerous and toxic substances into the air,” he wrote.
Israeli military spokesman Lieutenant Colonel Nadav Shoshani told reporters that the depots were used to fuel Iran’s war efforts, including producing or storing propellant for ballistic missiles. He added, “They are a legitimate military target.”
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said his government would continue to attack Iran’s rulers “without mercy.” “We have an organized plan with many surprises to destabilize the government and bring about change,” he said in a video statement.
Axios, citing a senior US official, reported that US Special Envoy Steve Witkoff and Trump’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner, would visit Israel on Tuesday.
Trump told reporters on Air Force One that he did not want negotiations to end the fighting, which has driven up energy prices worldwide, disrupted business, and disrupted air travel.
He said, “I don’t think there will come a time when anyone will say, ‘We surrender.'”