Iran's Assembly of Experts names Mojtaba Khamenei as new supreme leader
The 56-year-old son of the late Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was chosen to succeed his father, who died February 28 in airstrikes attributed to the U.S. and Israel.
March 8, 2026
Iran's Assembly of Experts designated Mojtaba Khamenei, 56, as the country's new supreme leader Sunday, more than a week after the death of his father, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, officials said.
The clerical body of 88 members announced the decision in a video statement and at a gathering in Vanak Square in Tehran, according to Iran's state television IRIB. The Assembly said it conducted the selection in an extraordinary session following exhaustive deliberations and in accordance with Article 108 of Iran's Constitution.
"After careful and extensive study in accordance with Article 108 of the Constitution and in accordance with religious duty in the presence of God Almighty, Ayatollah Mojtaba Hosseini Khamenei, may God protect him, has been appointed in today's extraordinary session as the third leader of the Islamic Republic of Iran," the Assembly stated in an official communiqué.
Mojtaba Khamenei succeeds his father, who governed Iran since 1989. The elder Khamenei died February 28 in airstrikes attributed to Israel and the United States. According to state media reports, Mojtaba also lost his wife, Zahra Haddad Adel, and his mother, Mansureh Joyasteh Bagerzadeh, in the same attacks.
Assembly members said the decision reflected majority approval. Mohsen Heydari, a representative from Khuzestan Province, stated that "the most appropriate candidate, approved by the majority of the assembly of experts, was designated." Mohamad Mehdi Mirbagheri, another Assembly member, confirmed in a video distributed by the Fars news agency that a "firm opinion reflecting the majority position" had been adopted.
The selection had been kept confidential during internal consultations within Iran's leadership. Ahmad Alamolhoda, an Assembly member representing Khorasan Province, indicated earlier Sunday that a successor had been chosen but the identity remained under strict state secrecy amid what he described as an unprecedented security crisis following Ali Khamenei's death.
Mojtaba Khamenei wears the black turban of a sayyed, indicating his family descends from the Prophet Muhammad. He accumulated power during his father's tenure and became an influential figure close to Iran's security forces and the broader economic apparatus, according to officials and analysts.
Hosseinali Eshkevari, also an Assembly member, stated that the designated leader would continue the political and religious line of Imam Khomeini and the late Khamenei.
The Assembly appealed to "the noble nation of Iran" and particularly to "the elites and intellectuals" to "swear loyalty to the leader and maintain the unity" of the country.
U.S. President Donald Trump commented on the succession Sunday, stating that the new leader "will not last long" without his approval. Trump had previously indicated that Mojtaba would be an "unacceptable" option, and an Assembly official noted during the announcement that the selection was based on the premise that Iran's supreme leader should be "hated by the enemy," referencing Trump's earlier statements.