Iran makes hardline choice in Mojtaba Khamenei as Supreme leader

TEHRAN: Ayatollah Seyyed Mojtaba Hosseini Khamenei, who is said to be more hardline than his father, has been announced as the third Leader of Iran’s Islamic Revolution following a decision by the country’s Assembly of Experts after days of deliberation.

The announcement came late Sunday night (local time), marking a pivotal moment in the political and religious leadership of the Islamic Republic.

The clerical body responsible for appointing the country’s supreme leader confirmed the decision in a formal statement, declaring, “By a decisive vote, the Assembly of Experts elected Ayatollah Seyyed Mojtaba Hosseini Khamenei as the third Leader of the sacred system of the Islamic Republic of Iran”.

WATCH: Mojtaba Khamenei is announced as Iran’s new Supreme Leader in Tehran’s Vanak Square. https://t.co/eFEeeQNUfw pic.twitter.com/QuCfaT7Dwk

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Born in 1969 in the city of Mashhad, Mojtaba Khamenei is the second son of the late Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei, who served as Iran’s supreme leader for nearly four decades. His early years were spent in Tehran, where he completed secondary schooling at the well-known Alavi School, an institution associated with many intellectual and political figures of the Islamic Republic.

Khamenei’s formative years coincided with one of the most turbulent periods in Iran’s modern history. At the age of seventeen, during the Iran-Iraq War, he volunteered to serve on the front lines as a member of the Habib ibn Mazaher Battalion of the 27th Mohammad Rasulollah Division in Tehran. The experience reportedly left a lasting impression on him and strengthened his commitment to the ideals of the Islamic Revolution.

After the war, he pursued religious studies, moving to the city of Qom in 1989 to begin advanced seminary education. He remained there for several years before returning to Tehran to continue his studies and later resumed his higher religious training in Qom. Over time, he studied advanced jurisprudence and principles of Islamic law under prominent scholars, participating in the highest levels of seminary lectures dedicated to independent juristic reasoning.

Observers within Iran’s religious establishment have often described him as a meticulous scholar with a structured understanding of Islamic sciences, while US President Donald Trump has labelled him as “unacceptable”. Several religious authorities in Qom have highlighted his intellectual rigour and analytical approach to religious scholarship.

In 1997, Mojtaba Khamenei married Zahra Haddad Adel, and the couple had three children — two sons and a daughter. His wife was reportedly killed in the February 28 attack that also resulted in the death of his father.

Throughout his father’s leadership, Mojtaba Khamenei played a role behind the scenes in national affairs, participating in consultations with senior officials and contributing to discussions on key issues ranging from economic stability and technological development to agricultural modernisation and housing policy.

Despite his influence, he maintained a notably low public profile, focusing largely on intellectual and institutional work within Iran’s religious and academic circles. He also cultivated relationships with leading clerics in Qom and Mashhad and supported initiatives aimed at strengthening the scholarly foundations of the country’s religious seminaries.

Now assuming leadership at a time of significant regional tension and political uncertainty, Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei takes charge of the Islamic Republic with decades of clerical training and experience working closely with the country’s governing institutions.

According to a Times of Israel report, analysts say the choice of Mojtaba, a deeply hardline cleric whose wife, mother and other family members were also killed in US-Israeli strikes, sends an unequivocal message: Iran’s leadership has rejected any prospect of compromise to preserve the system and sees no path forward except confrontation, revenge and endurance.

Mojtaba, has long opposed reformist groups advocating engagement with the West. In November 2019, the US Treasury Department issued sanctions against Mojtaba. He was designated for representing the then Supreme Leader in an official capacity despite never being elected or appointed to a government position.

The US Treasury further said that the then Supreme Leader had delegated a part of his leadership responsibilities to Mojataba Khamenei, who worked closely with the commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps-Qods Force (IRGC-QF) and also the Basij Resistance Force (Basij) to advance his father’s destabilizing regional ambitions and oppressive domestic objectives.

It had also been reported that Mojtaba Khamenei has access to luxury properties in London and accounts in the UK, Switzerland and Lichtenstein.

His appointment marks the beginning of a new chapter in the leadership of Iran’s Islamic Revolution, with supporters emphasising continuity in the ideological and institutional legacy established by previous leaders. The supreme leader is at the heart of Iran’s Shiite theocracy and has final say over all matters of state. He also serves as the commander-in-chief of the country’s military and the IRGC. (ANI)