The New York Times, citing informed Iranian officials, reported that Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has nominated three senior clerics as potential successors in the event of his death, reflecting a desire to ensure a swift and stable transfer of power amid growing regional instability.
According to the report, Khamenei is taking preemptive steps to avoid a power vacuum and prevent internal divisions should he pass away, especially as Iran faces intensifying external threats and internal strain, particularly following recent Israeli airstrikes and increasing speculation about possible U.S. military intervention.
While Khamenei’s son, Mojtaba Khamenei, has often been rumored as a potential successor, The New York Times noted that he is not among the three nominated figures. The identities of the candidates have not been disclosed publicly.
The report also highlighted how Israel’s military operations, including a 30-jet airstrike on targets in Ahvaz, and inflammatory rhetoric from both U.S. and Israeli leaders have exacerbated the situation.
U.S. President Donald Trump, responding to reports of a rejected Israeli plot to assassinate Khamenei, posted on Truth Social, saying, “We know exactly where the so-called Supreme Leader is hiding. He’s an easy target… we won’t assassinate him — at least not right now.”
Similarly, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu remarked that Khamenei’s death “would not escalate the conflict, but rather end it,” while Defense Minister Israel Katz went further, saying Khamenei “cannot be allowed to continue.”
Iran’s constitution mandates that the Assembly of Experts, an elected body of 88 senior clerics, is responsible for choosing a new Supreme Leader upon the current leader’s death. This mechanism has only been used once since the 1979 Islamic Revolution, when Khamenei himself was appointed in 1989 following the death of Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini.
As tensions escalate both inside and outside Iran, Khamenei’s reported move to nominate potential successors reflects growing concern within Iran’s leadership about the stability of the Islamic Republic’s power structure in the face of military threats and mounting geopolitical pressures.
