Iran named Mojtaba Khamenei to succeed his father Ali Khamenei as supreme leader on Monday (9 March), signaling that hardliners remain firmly in charge, as the week-old U.S.-Israeli war with Iran pushed oil above $100 a barrel.
The 56-year-old cleric was selected by Iran’s Assembly of Experts, an 88-member body responsible under the Constitution for appointing the country’s top political and religious authority.
"By a decisive vote, the Assembly of Experts, appointed Ayatollah Seyyed Mojtaba Hosseini Khamenei as the third Leader of the sacred system of the Islamic Republic of Iran," the Assembly said in a statement.
The position gives Mojtaba the final say in all matters of state in the Islamic Republic.
Mojtaba’s appointment will likely draw the ire of U.S. President Donald Trump, who said on Sunday that Washington should have a say in the selection. "If he doesn't get approval from us, he's not going to last long," he told ABC News.
In an interview with the Times of Israel after the new supreme leader was named, Trump declined to respond, saying only "We'll see what happens," according to the newspaper.
Israel's Defence Minister Israel Katz has echoed President Trump's stance on targeting the new supreme leader.
In a post on X, he said, “Any leader selected by the Iranian terror regime to continue leading the plan for Israel’s destruction, threatening the United States, the free world and countries in the region, and suppressing the Iranian people, will be a certain target for assassination, no matter his name or where he hides,”.
Meanwhile footage coming out of Tehran shows a gathering of people waving Iranian flags and chanting 'Khamenei' following the announcement of the new supreme leader late on Sunday.
Mojtaba's father, Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, was killed in one of the first strikes launched against Iran more than a week ago.
Iranian state media said the leadership of Iran's armed forces had pledged allegiance to Mojtaba Khamenei and the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said in a statement they are ready to follow the new supreme leader.
The Assembly of Experts met on Sunday to elect a new supreme leader despite threats that the body would be targeted, Iran's security chief, Ali Larijani, said on state TV after the announcement.
Mojtaba Khamenei could lead the country under the current sensitive conditions, Larijani said, calling for unity around the new leader.
The expanding war has severely impacted the oil trade and surging prices sparked a fall in share futures in Asia on Monday, amid fears of rising living costs. The dollar rose sharply against the euro and the yen.
U.S. crude futures rose more than 20% in early trade on Monday, hitting their highest since July 2022, amid fears of tighter supply and prolonged disruptions to oil shipments through the Strait of Hormuz.
Trump, in a social media post, said oil prices "will drop rapidly when the destruction of the Iran nuclear threat is over," and said the price hike was "a very small price to pay for U.S., and World, Safety and Peace."
As fighting escalated on Sunday, day nine of the war, thick black smoke hung over Tehran, residents said, after strikes on oil storage facilities had lit up the night sky with plumes of orange flame.
Iran's foreign ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei said the large-scale attack marked a "dangerous new phase" of the conflict and amounted to a war crime.
Israeli military spokesman Lieutenant Colonel Nadav Shoshani told reporters the depots were used to fuel Iran's war effort, including producing or storing propellant for ballistic missiles. "They are a legal military target," he said.
Netanyahu said his government would press on with the assault and strike Iran's rulers "without mercy".
"We have an organised plan with many surprises to destabilise the regime and enable change," he said in a video statement.
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