Iran’s Assembly of Experts has selected Mojtaba Chamenei as the country’s new Supreme Leader, continuing the Islamic Republic’s leadership.
Chamenei’s Background and Connections
The 56-year-old Mojtaba Chamenei holds the mid-ranking religious title of Hojatoleslam in Shia Islam, which is lower than Ayatollah and Grand Ayatollah. He is known for his close, decade-long ties with the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and has served as a key liaison between his father and the leadership of this force.
Succession Process
Mojtaba Chamenei was among the main candidates to become the new Supreme Leader of the Islamic Republic, despite the country’s prevailing ideology not endorsing the principle of hereditary succession to this position. According to reports in The New York Times from early March, Ali Chamenei had conveyed to his supporters his opposition to the dynastic succession of the Supreme Leader position.
Earlier on Sunday, Mohsen Hejdari, a representative of Khuzestan province in the 88-member Assembly of Experts, stated that the selection was made in accordance with Ali Chamenei’s recommendation, who said his successor should be “hated by the enemy” rather than praised by him.
International Reactions
U.S. President Donald Trump stated on Sunday that the next leader of Iran will not last long without Washington’s support. Israel, meanwhile, announced that the new Iranian Supreme Leader – regardless of who it will be – will automatically become a target for its military forces.
On Thursday, Trump admitted that Mojtaba Chamenei would most likely take power after his father. However, he declared that this was unacceptable to him. “They’re wasting their time. Chamenei’s son is a mediocrity. I must be involved in designating (the successor), just as in the case of Delcy Rodriguez in Venezuela,” Trump said.
Expert Analysis
Experts differ in their assessment of the successor to the Ayatollah killed by Israel and the U.S. For some, it represents a reasonable choice; for others, it means a continuation of militarism and terror. Mojtaba Chamenei, the new leader of Iran, is described in more detail in an article by Wiktorija Bieliaszyn on Wyborcza.pl.