When millions of Iranians poured into the streets in 1979 to end the rule of the former shah, their revolution seemed to have ended the practice of passing power from father to son. it’s not.
Mojtaba Khamenei, the second son of former supreme leader Ali Khamenei, has been elevated to the position his father held for almost 40 years until he was killed in a US and Israeli airstrike. The 88-member expert panel accomplished what many Iranians had hoped would never be done: turn the Islamic Republic into a dynasty.
The appointment of someone deemed “unacceptable” by US President Donald Trump appears to be a deliberate act of defiance and signals that Iranian leadership has no intention of bowing to US pressure. Instead, the regime appears to be further reinforcing the slain supreme leader’s hard line, betting that it can survive future attacks by consolidating power around the Revolutionary Guards under the leadership of the young Ayatollah Khamenei.
Image-building had already begun before the news fully spread in a country where the internet and communications are almost completely cut off.
Within hours of Mojtaba’s appointment as Iran’s third supreme leader, state media released a four-minute documentary looking back on his life. His humble beginnings, his seminary studies, and, importantly, his time at the age of 17 when he “fought bravely” alongside the defenders of the revolution on the front lines of the Iran-Iraq war.
The message of this clip was clear. Mojtaba is the rightful successor to the “martyr leader” and has the political and religious qualifications to rule. He also sought to pre-empt a central criticism that he lacks the academic depth traditionally expected of a “vali fakih,” or top jurist. The film aims to reassure the regime’s core supporters that there is no need to panic by depicting a leader currently at the helm who is well-versed in global affairs and security issues.
A series of oaths of allegiance followed along the organizational chain: president, parliament, and the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC). Choreographed and published, they were intended to show that the system, or “netham”, was working and functioning properly.
Born in 1969, Mojtaba Khamenei received a religious education like his brothers, but he did not rise to the rank of mujtahid, a level of Islamic jurisprudence that many regime supporters consider essential to the role of supreme leader. He is married to Zahra, the daughter of former parliament speaker and Khamenei confidante Gholam Haddad Adel.
Mojtaba kept a low profile for years, but behind the scenes he was a central figure in the vast bureaucratic circles of his father’s regime. He forged close ties with the Revolutionary Guards and the economic networks that supported the regime.
Since little footage of him exists in the public domain, state media has relied on AI-generated footage of the new leader to fill the gap since taking office.
To Iranian observers, his behind-the-scenes influence was undeniable, even if he did not hold a senior formal position. In recent years, his work in his father’s office has elevated him as a possible successor, and in 2021, photos appeared on social media of supporters handing out posters openly promoting him as the next leader on the streets of Tehran.
Many believe he played a pivotal role in promoting the election of hardliner Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in the 2005 presidential election. He is known for mobilizing the Revolutionary Guards’ network to support the candidacy of then-Tehran mayor Ahmadinejad, who is running against Khamenei’s rival, Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani.
When millions of Iranians took to the streets in 2009 to protest Ahmadinejad’s re-election, which they viewed as fraudulent, it was clear that Mojtaba was not just the leader’s son, but a political operator in his own right. This uprising was brutally suppressed and marked the beginning of the end of the true national reform movement. Events that year demonstrated his superiority, with demonstrators in the streets chanting “Mojtaba bemiri rabari lo navini”, or “Mojtaba dies so you don’t take on the role of leader”.
He was sanctioned by the United States in 2019 after being accused by the U.S. Treasury of working closely with powerful Revolutionary Guards commanders to advance what it called his father’s “destabilizing regional ambitions and repressive domestic goals.”
The US and Israeli attacks that killed his father also killed several of his relatives. According to state media, Khamenei’s daughter, grandson, daughter-in-law and son-in-law were all killed in the attack. Days later, Mojtaba’s mother, the late supreme leader’s wife, also died from her wounds, state media said.
What does his rise mean for Iran and its war with the United States?
Hopes for a more democratic future in Iran may now be dashed, as Mojtaba’s elevation sends an unmistakable message about the direction Iran’s hardline rulers intend to take the regime. This suggests that the Revolutionary Guards and its allies have become more determined to continue the legacy and policies of Ayatollah Khamenei from the first stage of this war.
Mr. Mojtaba has no managerial background and has never led any major organization or organization. He has said little publicly about the myriad social, economic, cultural and political challenges already facing the country, even before the devastation of all-out war. And his worldview is shaped by his father’s shadow.
Maha Yahya, director of the Beirut-based Carnegie Middle East Center, told CNN before Mojtaba was confirmed that by selecting him, Iran’s rulers would signal “continuation of the regime.” He said the appointment could also be seen as a message from the administration that “we cannot change our position” due to military pressure from the United States and Israel.
Ali Alfone, a senior fellow at the Arab and Gulf States Institute, told CNN that his appointment sends a message of continuity at home and defiance abroad, warning that the new leader may struggle to overcome long-standing legitimacy problems at home.
“Will this solve the electricity and water shortages for the people? Will it solve unemployment and all the other problems facing the regime? No,” Alfone said.
Gary Gruppo, a former U.S. ambassador to Oman, said Mojtaba’s experience came from running his father’s office.
“He has power because he ran his father’s office. … You could think of him as being similar to a chief of staff who touches on intelligence, economic policy, security policy, and of course all political issues as well as religious issues,” he said.
Mojtaba succeeded his father on a night that had deep symbolic resonance for Shia Muslims. The clerics chose the first day of Laylat al-Qadr, one of the holiest nights of Ramadan, to announce the appointment. This period also commemorates the assassination of Imam Ali ibn Abi Talib, who Shia Muslims believe was appointed by God to succeed the Prophet Muhammad.
The morning after Mojtaba’s inauguration, regime supporters chanted “God’s grace has been revealed” in Tehran’s subway. “Khamenei is young again.”
