Iran may be approaching another leadership crisis amid reports that Mojtaba Khamenei, chosen to succeed his father after Ali Khamenei’s elimination, is seriously ill, in a coma or otherwise unable to govern.
If Mojtaba is removed from the picture, Iran’s Assembly of Experts would formally choose a replacement. Possible candidates include Alireza Arafi, a hardline cleric serving on the interim leadership council; Mohammad Mehdi Mirbagheri, an extreme anti-Western ideologue; and judiciary chief Gholam-Hossein Mohseni-Ejei.
Hassan Khomeini, grandson of Islamic Republic founder Ruhollah Khomeini, is another recognizable name. However, his comparatively moderate image makes him an unlikely choice for Iran’s entrenched clerical and security establishment.
The real center of power may no longer be the supreme leader’s office. Without a functioning and dominant religious leader, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps is increasingly positioned to control Iran’s military, political and security decision-making.