DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Following the death of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in an Israeli strike last week, attention has turned to his son Mojtaba Khamenei as a leading contender for the nation’s highest position, despite his lack of formal government experience.
The 54-year-old has remained out of public view since Saturday’s Israeli airstrike on his father’s offices claimed the life of the 86-year-old leader. The attack also killed Mojtaba’s spouse, Zahra Haddad Adel, whose family has deep connections to Iran’s religious government structure.
While Iranian state media hasn’t disclosed his location, officials believe Mojtaba remains alive and has sought refuge as American and Israeli military operations continue targeting Iran.
His candidacy for succession has previously drawn criticism for potentially establishing a religious dynasty similar to Iran’s historical monarchy. However, the deaths of his father and wife, now viewed by hardliners as war martyrs against America and Israel, may strengthen his position with the elderly religious leaders of the 88-member Assembly of Experts responsible for choosing Iran’s next supreme leader.
The future leader will inherit command of Iran’s military forces during wartime and oversight of the country’s highly enriched uranium reserves that could potentially produce nuclear weapons if authorized.
According to United Against Nuclear Iran, a U.S. advocacy organization, Mojtaba’s role paralleled that of Ahmad Khomeini, son of Iran’s founding Supreme Leader Ruhollah Khomeini, serving as “a combination of aide-de-camp, confidant, gatekeeper and power broker.”
President Donald Trump may have inadvertently strengthened Mojtaba’s prospects by denouncing him during a Thursday interview with Axios and demanding involvement in Iran’s leadership selection process.
“They are wasting their time. Khamenei’s son is a lightweight. I have to be involved in the appointment,” Trump stated, referencing his administration’s actions regarding former Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro.
Trump further declared: “Khamenei’s son is unacceptable to me. We want someone that will bring harmony and peace to Iran.”
Born in Mashhad in 1969, approximately a decade before Iran’s 1979 Islamic Revolution, Mojtaba witnessed his father’s opposition activities against Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi during his childhood.
An official account of Ali Khamenei’s life describes an incident where the shah’s secret police, known as SAVAK, raided their residence and assaulted the religious leader. When the children awakened afterward, they were initially told their father had departed for a holiday.
“But I told them, ‘There is no need to lie.’ I told them the truth,” the elder Khamenei reportedly said.
Following the shah’s overthrow, the Khamenei family relocated to Tehran, Iran’s capital city. Mojtaba participated in the Iran-Iraq conflict as part of the Habib ibn Mazahir Battalion, a Revolutionary Guard paramilitary unit whose veterans later gained prominent intelligence roles, likely with Khamenei family support.
When his father assumed the supreme leadership in 1989, Mojtaba and his relatives gained access to billions in assets controlled by Iran’s bonyads, or foundations, which manage wealth from state enterprises and former royal holdings.
His influence expanded alongside his father’s authority as he operated from offices in central Tehran. U.S. diplomatic documents released by WikiLeaks in the late 2000s dubbed the younger Khamenei “the power behind the robes.” One report alleged he monitored his father’s communications, functioned as his “principal gatekeeper,” and was building his own political network.
A 2008 diplomatic cable described Khamenei as “widely viewed within the regime as a capable and forceful leader and manager who may someday succeed to at least a share of national leadership; his father may also see him in that light,” while noting his limited religious credentials and relatively young age.
“Mojtaba is, however, due to his skills, wealth, and unmatched alliances, reportedly seen by a number of regime insiders as a plausible candidate for shared leadership of Iran upon his father’s demise, whether that demise is soon or years in the future,” the document stated.
The U.S. Treasury reports that Mojtaba has maintained close relationships with Iran’s Revolutionary Guard, including leaders of its overseas Quds Force and the volunteer Basij militia that brutally crushed nationwide demonstrations in January.
During Trump’s initial presidency in 2019, the United States imposed sanctions on him for working to “advance his father’s destabilizing regional ambitions and oppressive domestic objectives.”
These accusations include claims that Mojtaba secretly backed hardline President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s 2005 election victory and his controversial 2009 reelection that triggered Green Movement demonstrations.
Former presidential candidate Mahdi Karroubi, who ran in both 2005 and 2009, condemned Mojtaba as “a master’s son” and accused him of election interference. His father reportedly responded at the time that his son was “a master himself, not a master’s son.”
Iran has experienced only one previous supreme leader transition since the Islamic Revolution. Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini passed away at 86 after spearheading the revolution and guiding Iran through its eight-year conflict with Iraq.
The incoming leader will assume power following the 12-day conflict with Israel and during ongoing U.S.-Israeli efforts to neutralize Iran’s nuclear capabilities and military strength, while hoping Iranian citizens will revolt against their theocratic government.
Iran’s supreme leader sits at the center of the nation’s intricate Shiite religious government structure and maintains ultimate authority over all state affairs. The position also includes commander-in-chief responsibilities for the country’s armed forces and the Revolutionary Guard, a paramilitary organization the United States classified as terrorist in 2019 and which gained significant power under his father’s leadership.
The Guard directs the self-proclaimed “Axis of Resistance,” a network of militant organizations and allies throughout the Middle East designed to oppose American and Israeli interests, while also controlling substantial business interests in Iran and the nation’s ballistic missile capabilities.
