Iran’s new Supreme Leader Mojtaba narrowly survives airstrike by seconds

The Financial News reported that at the end of last month, Mojtaba Khamenei narrowly escaped death when the United States of America (US) and Israel Defense Forces (IDF) launched an airstrike on the leadership compound in Tehran, Islamic Republic of Iran (Iran). He reportedly stepped outside the building just minutes before it was hit by missiles.
On the 16th (local time), The Telegraph in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland (United Kingdom, UK) reported this account, citing an audio recording obtained recently from a senior official in the office of the late former Supreme Leader of Iran Ali Hosseini Khamenei.
According to the report, the recording captures remarks made by Ali Hosseini Khamenei’s chief of protocol, Mazaher Hosseini, during a meeting held in Tehran on the 12th. The Telegraph noted that the material has undergone independent verification.
The airstrike took place on the morning of February 28 and was described as a precision attack targeting the Khamenei family and the top leadership of the regime. According to the account, Mojtaba Khamenei briefly stepped into the courtyard just before the strike and was about to go back upstairs when the missiles slammed into the building.
Mojtaba Khamenei survived with a leg injury, but his wife, Zahra Haddad-Adel, and their son were reportedly killed instantly at the scene. The Telegraph also reported that the strike killed many key regime figures, including Misbah al-Hoda Bagheri Kani, Mojtaba’s brother-in-law, and Mohammad Siraj, the military chief of staff to Ali Hosseini Khamenei, causing the leadership structure to collapse almost overnight.
After his father Ali Hosseini Khamenei was killed in the airstrike, Mojtaba Khamenei was formally installed as Supreme Leader of Iran on the 8th, following several days of turmoil. However, controversy surrounding the succession of power has not subsided.
Citing assessments by US intelligence agencies, The Telegraph reported, "While he was alive, Ali Hosseini Khamenei opposed his son’s succession on the grounds that he lacked the necessary qualities." This has fueled fierce criticism of "hereditary politics" within the Islamic Republic of Iran, which was founded in opposition to monarchy, and has become a significant political liability.
Since the airstrike, Mojtaba Khamenei has not appeared in public even once. His first message after taking office was not delivered by him personally but read out by an anchor on Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting (IRIB), prompting widespread speculation that his injuries may be more serious than expected or that he may be unable to carry out his duties normally.
Foreign media have reported that Mojtaba Khamenei was flown to Russia for medical treatment.
Experts predict that the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) will emerge even more powerful, exploiting the leadership vacuum and Mojtaba Khamenei’s precarious political position.
jjyoon@fnnews.com Yoon Jae-joon Reporter