Iran named Mojtaba Khamenei as the new supreme leader of the Islamic Republic on Monday, March 9, succeeding his father Ayatollah Ali Khamenei who was killed in the large-scale US–Israeli attack on Tehran late last month
The Assembly of Experts, the 88-member clerical body responsible for appointing the country’s supreme leader, announced the decision after an extraordinary session, making Mojtaba Khamenei the third leader of the Islamic Republic since the 1979 revolution.
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps pledged allegiance to the new leader, saying it was ready for “complete obedience and self-sacrifice” in carrying out the directives of Ayatollah Seyyed Mojtaba Khamenei.
US President Donald Trump warned earlier that Iran’s next supreme leader would not last long without Washington’s approval, while claiming that US forces were achieving “rapid victories” in the conflict.
The US–Israel war on Iran, which began on February 28 with strikes on Tehran, entered its tenth day on Monday. Fresh explosions were heard in the Iranian capital, while Israeli attacks earlier struck oil facilities, triggering large fires and toxic smoke across parts of the city.
Iran has intensified retaliatory attacks across the region. Several people were injured early Monday after missile was intercepted over a residential area on Bahrain’s island of Sitra, the interior ministry said.
Saudi Arabia’s defence ministry reported intercepting and destroying a drone heading towards the Shaybah oil field in the kingdom’s Empty Quarter region.
In Lebanon, Israeli forces struck a hotel in central Beirut early Monday, the first attack on the city centre since the latest war with Hezbollah began. Lebanese authorities say nearly 400 people have been killed over the past week.
The US military confirmed that another service member has died from wounds sustained during Iran’s initial counterattack, raising the number of American troops killed in the conflict.
The US State Department has ordered non-emergency government personnel and their families to leave Saudi Arabia due to security risks as tensions escalate across the region.
Oil markets reacted sharply to the escalating war, with Brent crude rising to around USD 111 a barrel while US crude surged past USD 100 amid fears of supply disruptions in the region.
The conflict has caused mounting casualties across the region. Iranian authorities say more than 1,300 people have been killed in the country, while Lebanon has reported at least 394 deaths, including 83 children, since fighting escalated. Additional fatalities have also been reported in Israel, Kuwait, Bahrain, the UAE, Oman and Saudi Arabia, according to regional authorities.
