Support for Mojtaba Khamenei becoming Iran’s next Supreme Leader was reportedly limited—not just internationally but also within his own family. Yes, Mojtaba’s appointment was not just opposed by US President Donald Trump, but also by his late father, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

According to a report by the New York Post, the late Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, who was reportedly killed in airstrikes on February 28 by the United States, expressed in his will that he did not want his son to succeed him.

Despite the late leader’s will, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) backed Mojtaba’s rise and ultimately pushed him into the position.

According to experts, the elder Khamenei had serious reservations about his son’s suitability for the role and therefore did not want him to be named as his successor.

“In Khamenei’s will, he explicitly asked Mojtaba not to be named as successor," said Khosro Isfahani, research director at the opposition group National Union for Democracy, which has ties to Iranian intelligence networks.

According to Isfahani, the late Iranian leader believed his son, Mojtaba Khamenei, lacked the political experience and stature required to lead the country. In Iran, the succession of the supreme leader is normally decided by the Assembly of Experts—an 88-member clerical body tasked with selecting the nation’s top authority.

However, Isfahani claimed that Mojtaba’s appointment did not follow the usual process, suggesting that the selection departed from the traditional procedure used to determine Iran’s leadership.

“Mojtaba is an impotent young cleric who has achieved nothing in terms of political life. All these years, he has been nothing without his father’s name," Isfahani said.

He further claimed that the IRGC pressured the Assembly while it was deliberating last week and ultimately forced the decision to name Mojtaba as the next Supreme Leader of Iran.

Isfahani, citing sources inside Iran, said Mojtaba did not even secure a majority of votes from the council. Pressure from the IRGC reportedly led several clerics to boycott the session at which the successor was formally announced.

Source: World News in news18.com, World Latest News, World News