Mojtaba Khamenei, the 56-year-old second-eldest son of the late Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, has been appointed as Iran’s new Supreme Leader following his father’s death in U.S.-Israeli airstrikes on February 15, 2026.
The decision was reportedly made by Iran’s Assembly of Experts in an emergency session shortly after Khamenei’s passing, though Iranian state media has yet to issue an official announcement. Mojtaba who has never held formal government office, delivered public speeches, or given interviews has long been considered the de facto “power behind the robes” within the regime, according to leaked U.S. diplomatic cables from the late 2000s (WikiLeaks) and various Iranian opposition sources.
Who Is Mojtaba Khamenei?
Born September 8, 1969, in Mashhad, northeast Iran.
Second of Ali Khamenei’s six children.
Served briefly in the military during the Iran-Iraq War (1980–1988) at age 17.
Began formal religious studies in Qom in 1999 at age 30 — unusually late for a seminary path.
Remains a mid-ranking cleric (Hojjatoleslam); recent media and regime-affiliated outlets began referring to him as “Ayatollah” ahead of the succession, a move critics see as an attempt to elevate his religious credentials.
Widely accused by reformists of orchestrating interference in the 2005 and 2009 presidential elections in favour of hardliner Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, including alleged vote-rigging and suppression of the 2009 Green Movement protests.
Reportedly met with opposition leader Mir-Hossein Mousavi in 2012 to urge him to end his protest.
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The appointment breaks with the Islamic Republic’s founding principle of selecting the Supreme Leader based on religious scholarship and merit rather than hereditary succession. Ali Khamenei had publicly spoken only vaguely about future leadership and, according to one Assembly of Experts member two years ago, opposed the idea of his son succeeding him.
Mojtaba’s low public profile, lack of senior clerical rank, and the perception of dynastic rule could fuel internal resistance from hardline factions and deepen public discontent amid economic collapse, wartime hardship and widespread repression.
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Despite being targeted in the same strikes that killed his father, Mojtaba reportedly survived and has since been moved to a fortified bunker complex outside Tehran (possibly in the Alborz Mountains or near Qom). Regime protocols reportedly involve constant relocation and decoy measures to evade Israeli airstrikes.
Israel’s Defence Minister Yoav Gallant stated last week that “any leader installed by this terror regime” continuing policies of aggression against Israel, threats to the U.S., and oppression of Iranians would be “an unequivocal target for elimination.” Mojtaba is now widely believed to be at the top of Israel’s target list.
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The U.S.-Israel campaign against Iran, now in its third week, has seen thousands of targets hit, including missile sites, air defenses, and leadership facilities. Iran continues retaliatory strikes across the Gulf. The succession comes at a time of extreme internal and external pressure on the Islamic Republic.
Mojtaba inherits a fractured elite, a war economy, public anger over civilian casualties, and the daunting task of ensuring regime survival while facing the possibility of further targeted eliminations.
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By Ogungbayi Beedee Adeyemi
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