Iran Says Khamenei's Son Elected as Supreme Leader

Iran Says Khamenei's Son Elected as Supreme Leader

The German broadcaster Deutsche Welle (DW) reported, citing sources in the Iranian government, that Ayatollah Ali Khamenei's son, Mojtaba Khamenei, has been elected as the country's new supreme leader. The decision was reportedly made by the Council of Experts, a group of 88 Shiite clerics. According to some sources, the process was influenced by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. The country is currently being ruled by a three-member interim council.

56-year-old Mojtaba is the son of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who was killed in US and Israeli bombings. In recent years, he has been mentioned as a possible successor. In the 1980s and 1990s, Mojtaba worked as an "invisible soldier." Unlike many Iranian politicians, he has remained out of the limelight and has operated in the shadows. 

Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who had ruled Iran since 1989, was killed in a US-Israeli airstrike on Iran that began on February 28.