Iran chooses Mojtaba Khamenei, eldest son of late Ayatollah, as next supreme leader of Iran:

[noumoe]

Iran chooses Mojtaba Khamenei, eldest son of late Ayatollah, as next supreme leader of Iran: report

This is despite Mojtaba being reported as one of the 40 top officials killed in Iran during the Saturday strike from the US and Israel.

by: Thomas Stevenson 03/03/2026

Ayatollah Khamenei’s oldest son has apparently been elected as the supreme leader of Iran in order to replace his dad, according to a report from Iranian opposition media.

Mojtaba Khamenei, 56, was selected to assume control of the country, according to Iran International. The report has been picked up by some media outlets, but there has not been word from the state-controlled media in Iran. This is despite Mojtaba being reported as one of the 40 top officials killed in Iran during the Saturday strike from the US and Israel.

The reported appointment comes as there have been rumors about who would be replacing Khamenei, who was killed during the strikes and had ruled Iran with an iron fist. Khamenei’s son is known for being a religious hardliner like his father and has ties to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, per the New York Post. The US sanctioned Mojtaba in 2019.

Although Iran has looked down on family succession in leadership roles, it remains unclear how long Mojtaba will stay in power given the US’ air superiority and military abilities.


Iran has been in the control of Khamenei’s top officials who survived the strikes, and there has been speculation about who will fill the power vacuum that was left behind by killing Khamenei.

After the US launched the initial attack in Iran on Saturday, Iran launched retaliation strikes against nearby Arab nations which have US military bases. After strikes from Iran were launched, multiple Arab states backed the US in its fight against Iran.

On Tuesday, President Donald Trump said that most of Iran's military capabilities have been heavily damaged and that the US is now focusing on the targeting of Iranian regime leadership.