He is closely tied to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and the nuclear program. Senior Israeli officials warn that he may be even more dangerous than his father.

Following Iran’s recent missile attacks on Israeli population centers and its determination to achieve the goals of its current operation, discussions have resurfaced about potentially assassinating Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei. After yesterday's strike on Soroka Hospital in Beersheba, Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant stated that “a dictator like Khamenei, who leads a regime calling for Israel’s destruction, cannot be allowed to survive.”

Intelligence officials in Israel and the West believe that if Khamenei is killed, his 56-year-old son Mojtaba is likely to succeed him.

The opposition outlet "Iran International" reported that Khamenei, along with his family and Mojtaba, was moved to an underground bunker in Lavizan, northeast Tehran. However, Western intelligence sources claim Israel could still locate and target him—just as it did with Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah, even when he was hiding deep in Beirut's Dahiya district.

Senior Israeli security sources have warned for months that if Mojtaba Khamenei becomes Iran's next Supreme Leader, it would be a grave development for Israel. They stress that Mojtaba is even more radical than his father and argue that if Ali Khamenei is targeted, his son should be eliminated simultaneously.

Mojtaba belongs to the regime's hardline conservative faction and maintains strong ties with the IRGC and Iranian intelligence agencies. His name gained prominence after the death of former President Ebrahim Raisi in a helicopter crash last year. Rumors in Iran suggested Mojtaba may have played a role in Raisi’s death, fearing Raisi would be selected as the next Supreme Leader.

Mojtaba’s power has grown since the U.S. assassination of Quds Force commander Qassem Soleimani in 2020. Soleimani’s death created a vacuum that helped Mojtaba solidify his influence in Iran’s political and military spheres.

Ideologically, Mojtaba is a staunch enemy of the U.S. and Israel. A veteran of the Iran-Iraq War, he has close personal ties with top IRGC commanders and Iran’s Basij militia. The U.S. Treasury has imposed sanctions on him. Intelligence sources believe he plays a direct role in Iran’s nuclear project and sees obtaining a nuclear weapon as vital to cementing Iran’s regional dominance.

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Yoni Ben Menachem, A NEWSRAEL Contributor, is a Middle East senior analyst ,a journalist and the former CEO of the Israel Broadcasting Authority(IBA). He has decades of experience in written and video journalism. Ben Menachem’s path in the media world began as a producer for Japanese television in the Middle East. After that, he held many key positions in the media: The CEO of the Israel Broadcasting Authority, director of “Kol Israel” Radio, reporter on West Bank and Gaza Strip affairs, political reporter and commentator, commentator on Middle East affairs and editor-in-chief and presenter of the program “Middle East Magazine”.