New York Times: Iran has named Mojtaba Khamenei, a son of the country’s slain supreme leader, as his father’s successor, according to a statement from top clerics published in state media. His ascension, announced early Monday morning, signals the government’s desire for continuity as Iran faces expanding attacks from the United States and Israel nine days into the war…
New York Times: Unlike his father, Mr. Khamenei, 56, carries the full religious credentials as an ayatollah at the moment of his ascension. He was known for teaching popular Shiite seminary classes.
But his personality or politics outside of his father’s tight inner circle are not known. He seldom speaks or appears in public. And now he will take the helm not just as Iran’s new religious and political authority, but also as the commander in chief of its armed forces…
Wall Street Journal: The elevation of Mojtaba Khamenei, a conservative long close to Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, shows that Trump’s efforts so far to cow the regime into surrender have failed. It also appears to have put hard-liners in firm control of the country, with moderate and reformist factions long marginalized. The 56-year old Khamenei is expected to take a confrontational stance toward the West…
Washington Post: The appointment shows the Iranian regime is “hardening and doubling down” according to Behnam Ben Taleblu, the director of the Iran program at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies. But Taleblu said there are also signs that the regime is under immense pressure.
Mojtaba hasn’t been seen in public since the start of the war, and the country has yet to hold a public funeral for his father. “The regime is still fighting,” Taleblu said, “but it is also afraid.”…
Financial Times: As supreme leader, Khamenei will have the final say on whether Tehran fights on or seeks an off-ramp. “This is a signal that the regime in its current form has no inclination to compromise and they intend to resist at all costs,” said Sanam Vakil, Middle East director at UK think-tank Chatham House…
Bloomberg: Mojtaba Khamenei embodies everything that the many thousands of people who have protested against the Islamic Republic in recent years oppose. That includes the impunity with which his father’s regime frequently targeted and killed citizens and political opponents, and the financial cronyism and corruption that’s enveloped the economy…
CNN: US President Donald Trump previously said Khamenei’s son would be an “unacceptable” selection. The announcement came hours after Israel launched fresh strikes which hit oil storage sites in Tehran…
Wall Street Journal: Speaking on state television late Saturday in a room plunged in near-total darkness, Ali Larijani, Iran’s top national-security official, vowed to hold President Trump responsible for killing Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei…
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