Iran's Council of Experts Elects Mojtaba Khamenei as Supreme Leader

Mojtaba, the son of Iran's late Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, has been elected the new leader of the Islamic Republic. This was announced by the Council of Experts, according to TASS.

"At today's extraordinary meeting, Ayatollah Seyyed Mojtaba Hosseini Khamenei was unanimously elected by the distinguished representatives of the Council of Experts as the third leader of the sacred system of the Islamic Republic of Iran," the state broadcaster quoted an excerpt from the council's statement.

He is the son of the late Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Media outlets had previously named him the most likely candidate. According to some reports, the candidacy of 56-year-old Mojtaba Khamenei was contested and criticized as an undesirable example of dynastic succession in a system based on revolutionary principles.

Iran's IRGC pledged allegiance to the republic's new leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, and expressed its readiness to follow his instructions, the statement said.