Iran names Mojtaba Khamenei Supreme Leader after father’s death

Iran on Monday appointed Mojtaba Khamenei as its new Supreme Leader succeeding his father Ali Khamenei in a development that signals the continued dominance of hardliners in Tehran even as the country remains engaged in an intensifying conflict with the United States US and IsraelMojtaba Khamenei a midranking cleric widely believed to hold considerable influence within Iranrsquos security apparatus and the extensive economic networks established during his fatherrsquos leadership had long been regarded as a leading candidate for the roleThe decision was taken by the Assembly of Experts an 88member clerical body responsible for choosing the Supreme Leader following the death of Ali Khamenei news agency IANS reportedThe assembly confirmed the decision in a statement issued shortly after midnight in TehranldquoBy a decisive vote the Assembly of Experts appointed Ayatollah Seyyed Mojtaba Hosseini Khamenei as the third Leader of the sacred system of the Islamic Republic of Iranrdquo the statement saidAs Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei will hold ultimate authority over all state affairs in the Islamic Republic including control of the military the judiciary and key political institutionsUS Israel attack Iran Trump warns Iranrsquos new leader may not ldquolast longrdquo without Washingtonrsquos nodHis appointment is expected to further strain relations with Washington US President Donald Trump said on Sunday that the US should have a role in Iranrsquos leadership transitionldquoIf he doesnrsquot get approval from us hersquos not going to last longrdquo Trump told ABC News Israel had also issued warnings ahead of the announcement indicating that whoever assumed the position could be targetedAli Khamenei Iranrsquos longtime Supreme Leader was killed in one of the initial strikes against Iran on February 28 when hostilities erupted between Iran and the USIsrael allianceThe conflict has already caused significant casualties The US military reported on Sunday that a seventh American service member had died from injuries suffered during Iranrsquos initial counterattack a week earlierThe announcement came a day after Trump oversaw the return to the US of the remains of six other American personnel who had been killedAccording to Iranrsquos ambassador to the United Nations the USIsraeli military campaign has led to the deaths of at least 1332 Iranian civilians and left thousands more injuredUS Israel attack Iran Tehran rejects Trumprsquos call for ldquounconditional surrenderrdquoDespite calls from Washington for Tehran to surrender Iranian leaders signalled they had no intention of backing down As Trump pushed for what he described as an ldquounconditional surrenderrdquo Iranrsquos parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf said Tehran was not seeking a ceasefire and would continue to punish those responsible for the attacksMeanwhile Israel continued targeting senior Iranian officials as part of its military campaign Israeli authorities said Abolqasem Babaian recently appointed head of the Supreme Leaderrsquos military office was killed in an airstrike carried out on SaturdayAs the fighting entered its ninth day residents in Tehran reported thick black smoke hanging over parts of the city after airstrikes struck oil storage facilitiesThe attacks illuminated the night sky with large plumes of orange flames indicating major damage to energy infrastructureIranrsquos foreign ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei described the largescale assault as a dangerous escalation and accused the attackers of committing a war crimeldquoBy targeting fuel depots the aggressors are releasing hazardous materials and toxic substances into the airrdquo Baghaei wrote in a post on XIsrael defended the strikes saying the facilities were connected to Iranrsquos military capabilitiesIsraeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the offensive against Iran would continue and warned that the countryrsquos leadership would face sustained attacksWith IANS inputs