AP
Mojtaba (Mücteba) Khamenei has been chosen as Iran’s new supreme leader
Supporters took to streets of Tehran early on Monday to celebrate the
appointment of Mojtaba Khamenei as Iran’s new supreme leader. The younger
Khamenei, who has not been seen or heard from publicly since the war started,
had long been considered a contender for the post, even before an Israeli strike
killed his father, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, and despite never being elected or
appointed to a government position. (AP video by Mohsen Ganji)
Today’s live updates have ended. Follow more live coverage on the Iran war.
Iranian state TV early Monday said Mojtaba Khamenei, son of the country’s late supreme leader, has been named his successor.
He had long been considered a contender, even before an Israeli strike killed his father at the start of the war, and despite never being elected or appointed to a government position.
Iran’s powerful paramilitary Revolutionary Guard answers to the supreme leader, and the younger Khamenei will have the central say in war strategy.
U.S. President Donald Trump told ABC News earlier Sunday he wants a say in who comes to power once the war is over; a new leader “is not going to last long” without his approval, he said.
Major developments we’re following:
- The U.S. military announced a seventh American service member has died of injuries sustained during an Iranian attack stationed in Saudi Arabia. The first six deaths were Army reservists killed in a March 1 attack in a Kuwaiti port.
- U.S. intelligence officials believe Russia has provided Iran with information to target U.S. troops and assets in the Middle East. Iran’s foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi, in an interview Sunday said that “military cooperation between Iran and Russia is not something new.”
- Evidence suggests the deadly blast at an Iranian elementary school was likely a U.S. airstrike. The Feb. 28 strike produced the highest reported civilian death toll since the war began, prompting staunch criticism from the United Nations and human rights monitors. The U.S. has not accepted responsibility but said it was investigating the matter.
- The death toll continues to rise. At least 1,230 people in Iran, more than 300 in Lebanon and around a dozen in Israel have been killed, according to officials in those countries.
▶ With fast-moving developments, the conflict in the Middle East can be hard to follow. See the war in maps, graphics and images from the AP.
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