Assassinated Iranian Supreme Leader Khamenei reportedly opposed son Mojtaba as his successor

Iran’s late supreme leader, Ali Khamenei, was opposed to his son Mojtaba Khamenei succeeding him, according to a U.S. intelligence report presented to President Donald Trump, Vice President JD Vance and other senior U.S. officials.

The assassinated Iranian leader reportedly believed that his son lacked the talent and leadership skills needed to run the ayatollah regime. In addition, Khamenei was opposed to transforming the Islamic Republic of Iran into a hereditary system.

However, last week, Iran announced that Mojtaba Khamenei had been chosen as the new supreme leader. Mojtaba, who has been described as an “apocalypse-obsessed” radical, has not been seen or heard from in public since the elimination of his father on Feb. 28. There are unconfirmed reports that Khamenei was seriously injured – or even killed – in the Israeli aerial strike that killed his father and some 40 top Iranian officials.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi denied that Mojtaba was injured or incapacitated during an interview on Thursday.

“The leader is completely healthy, in control of the situation and present in the arena,” Araghchi told the Qatari news outlet Al-Araby Al-Jadeed. 

“The message he delivered Thursday was very strong. Not only the leadership, but all state institutions are stable and everything is under control,” Araghchi added. However, the message attributed to Khamenei was delivered in writing and the regime has so far not produced any credible evidence that the new supreme leader is alive or functioning as Iran's de facto leader.

The Trump administration reportedly believes that Iran is currently run and being controlled by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC). 

Meanwhile, an unconfirmed report from Kuwaiti news outlet Al-Jarida claimed that an injured Mojtaba Khamenei was secretly flown aboard a Russian military aircraft to Moscow for medical treatment. The report quoted an unnamed senior source who said Khamenei underwent successful surgery and was receiving care in a private hospital at one of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s residences.

According to Al-Jarida, ongoing American and Israeli aerial strikes made it difficult for Mojtaba Khamenei to receive medical treatment in Iran. It also claimed that Putin personally offered to provide treatment for Khamenei during a phone conversation with Iran’s president, Masoud Pezeshkian.

While the report may be accurate, it has not yet been confirmed by any independent source.

Some observers have argued that Mojtaba Khamenei is even more radical than his late father. In an exclusive interview on THE ROSENBERG REPORT, Israeli Ambassador to the U.S. Yechiel Leiter described Mojtaba as a dangerous and “evil human being” with genocidal intentions. 

“He's an evil human being and he will not hesitate for a moment to advance his nuclear program,” Leiter said during the interview with show host Joel Rosenberg. 

“He's an enemy of the West. He was involved in the decision to slaughter Iranians two months ago when they rose up,” Leiter added.

The ambassador emphasized that Mojtaba played a central role in the massacre of between 30,000 and 40,000 civilian protesters in Iran in January. 

“So, he was very involved in that. He has blood on his hands. And, it's certainly no improvement over his father,” Leiter said.