Iran defies Trump, elevates Khamenei's son

Iran's clerical leadership chose confrontation over compromise in appointing Mojtaba Khamenei to succeed his father, Ali Khamenei, a move regional officials say is a direct rebuke to U.S. President Donald Trump, who had declared the son "unacceptable".



Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was killed in a U.S.-Israeli strike at the start of the conflict, now in its second week.



The appointment of Mojtaba as his successor by the Assembly of Experts locks hardliners firmly in control in Tehran - a gamble that could reshape Iran's war with the U.S. and Israel and reverberate ⁠far beyond the Middle East.



"Having Mojtaba take over is the same playbook," said Alex Vatanka, a senior fellow at the Middle East Institute.



"It's a big humiliation for the United States to carry out an operation of this scale, risk so much, and end up killing an 86-year-old man, only to have him replaced by his hardline son.”



Under Iran's complex, theocratic system, the supreme leader is the ultimate authority, including over foreign policy and Iran’s nuclear programme, as well as guiding the elected president and parliament.