Mojtaba Khamenei elected as Iran's new Supreme Leader: Israeli media

(Web Desk) - Israeli media has reported that Mojtaba Khamenei, the son of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, has been selected as Iran’s new supreme leader.

According to the reports, the committee formed to choose the next supreme leader has approved Mojtaba Khamenei’s name, and an official announcement of his appointment could be made within the next few hours.

However, Iranian media outlets have presented a different account, stating that a meeting regarding the nomination of the new supreme leader is still underway. The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) has indicated that the selection process may take approximately one week. Iranian state media has further reported that a formal announcement will be made after the funeral of Ali Khamenei.

Mojtaba Khamenei is a cleric and a political figure and the second son of Ali Khamenei. He reportedly participated in the Iran-Iraq War and has been described as influential within Iran’s political and security circles. Following the disputed 2009 presidential elections, he was alleged to have had influence over forces involved in suppressing protests.

Born in 1969 in Mashhad, Mojtaba spent seven years of his childhood in the northwestern Iranian cities of Sardasht and Mahabad. In 2004, he married Zahra Haddad Adel. Politically, he is considered to have supported former Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.

In 2019, Mojtaba Khamenei was placed under sanctions by the United States.