Iran Appoints Mojtaba Khamenei as New Supreme Leader After Death of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in U.S.-Israeli Strikes

U.S. and Israeli strikes on Iran began on Feb. 28 2026, killing Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in the first wave. Iran named his son, Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei, as the new supreme leader shortly afterward.

U.S. Officials say Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei was seriously wounded, possibly incapacitated, in the same strike. Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei has not been seen or heard from directly since the announcement. A photograph on May 6 2026 showed a banner depicting him alongside his late father along a street in Tehran.

U.S. and Israel on Feb. 28 2026 has shocked the global economy for more than two months as of early May 2026.

U.S. negotiators were speaking to "a whole different group" of "very reasonable" people. U.S. officials and Iran's negotiating team occurred in Islamabad in early April 2026.

Those talks ended with no agreement to convert the ceasefire into a wider peace deal. " Iran's parliament recently voted overwhelmingly in support of a statement backing the negotiating team. An Iranian transition from divine power to hard power has occurred, with the regime now tethered to the IRGC.

The IRGC has increased its power through key business acquisitions and by gaining influence as former members have become politicians over the past few decades. A Reuters article cited Iranian officials and analysts saying the new supreme leader's role was largely to legitimize decisions made by his generals.

Power has coalesced around a wartime leadership contingent consisting of the Supreme National Security Council, the supreme leader's office and the IRGC.