Iran’s military and hard-line political forces trumpeted the selection of Mojtaba Khamenei, a son of the recently killed supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, as his father’s successor, celebrating the ascension of one of their own.
The powerful Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps endorsed Mr. Khamenei in a statement, praising him as a “new dawn and a new phase for the revolution and the Islamic republic’s rule.” Mr. Khamenei, 56, was seen as their favored candidate. He is believed to have especially close ties with the Revolutionary Guards because he served in their ranks during the last years of the Iran-Iraq war.
And Ali Larijani, Iran’s top national security official, said the selection showed that Iran’s enemies had failed and thanked the Assembly of Experts, the group of 88 top clerics in charge of picking the next leader, for moving ahead despite the war.
“Despite the enemies’ tactics to kill Imam Khamenei in hopes of bringing the country to a dead end, Mojtaba Khamenei was elected in a legal process,” Mr. Larijani said in a statement to state media.
Mr. Larijani said in the statement that the new supreme leader must be a symbol of unity and called on political factions to set aside divisions and rally behind him.
Shortly after the announcement, those divisions remained evident.
Iran’s state television quickly switched from somber coverage of war and religious mourning to upbeat revolutionary anthems. It amplified voices supporting the new leader, cutting to scenes of large crowds celebrating in public squares in different cities. State media, highly censored and controlled by the country’s hard-line faction, did not interview any critics or show any sign of opposition.
But in Tehran, opponents of the government could be heard reacting to the news by chanting “Death to Mojtaba” from their windows and the rooftops of the capital, residents said in text messages.
Several Iranians opposing the government and hoping war would bring its end said in messages that the new leader would rule with an iron fist and double-down in hostility toward the United States and Israel. “This is a sign that things will get much worse” said Alireza, an engineer from Tehran who asked that his last name not be used for fear of retribution.
The Iranian armed forces quickly issued a statement pledging their allegiance to the new leader, according to a statement reported by Fars, the semiofficial news agency affiliated with the Revolutionary Guards.
The military vowed to “appear more powerful, resolute and committed than before in safeguarding the achievements of the Islamic Revolution, and will resist and stand firm under the command of their leader until their last breath and drop of blood,” the statement said.
Parin Behrooz contributed reporting.
Farnaz Fassihi is the United Nations bureau chief for The Times, leading coverage of the organization. She also covers Iran and has written about conflict in the Middle East for 15 years.
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