Iran's Ayatollah Khamenei killed in US-Israeli strikes: Who'll succeed him now? Key scenarios

Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was killed in the US-Israel joint strikes on Saturday. Many fear that his death would create a leadership vacuum in the Islamic Republic, given that he doesn't have a known successor. However, authorities in the country have already sprung into action. Here's what we could expect in Iran now:

Three key scenarios for the future of the Iranian regime:

A. Ali Khamenei would have provided four names before his death

B. During an interim time, there will be a council of four people who will run the country until the new leader is elected, Al Jazeera reported.

C. In addition to clerical contenders, recent assessments by US intelligence reportedly highlighted another scenario: Leadership could pass to hardline figures within Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), the Sunday Guardian reported. This would mark a shift from clerical succession to military‑influenced control.

Who runs the Iran regime now? The process to appoint a new leader

1. A council is formed to take over leadership powers until a new Supreme Leader is appointed.

Iran’s official news agency IRNA reported that a leadership council made up of the president, the judiciary chief, and a jurist from the Guardian Council will temporarily assume the duties of the supreme leader.

"Until the introduction of the Leader, a council consisting of the President, the Head of the Judiciary, and one of the jurists of the Guardian Council, selected by the Expediency Discernment Council, shall temporarily assume all duties of the Leader," IRNA news agency reported while quoting the 'constitutional provision for the absence of the Leader'.

Ali Larijani, Secretary of the National Security Council, said the formation of the Interim Leadership Council will take place on Sunday. He reportedly confirmed that the groundwork was laid during a meeting on Saturday, and the council is set to be formed as of now.

2. The Assembly of Experts selects a new supreme leader.

According to Al Jazeera, the 88 members of the Assembly of Experts, a clerical body, are expected to meet to discuss who will be the next leader.

These senior clerics vet candidates, hold internal votes, and decide who will take over, the Sunday Guardian reported.

The candidates of the Assembly of Experts are pre‑approved by the powerful Guardian Council, whose members are picked with Khamenei’s influence, the report added.

Who are possible candidates?

During the 12-day war with Israel in June 2025, when Khamenei was in hiding, he named three candidates who could be appointed to succeed him, according to a New York Times report. They were:

1. Gholam-Hossein Mohseni-Eje’i, the head of the judiciary.

2. Ali Asghar Hejazi, Ayatollah Khamenei’s chief of staff.

3. Hassan Khomeini, a grandson of Ayatollah Khomeini.

Here are the key figures often mentioned as possible successors of Khamenei, as per the Sunday Guardian:

1. Hojjat‑ol‑Eslam Mohsen Qomi: Close adviser to Khamenei.

2. Ayatollah Alireza Arafi: Senior cleric with leadership roles in both the Assembly of Experts and the Guardian Council.

3. Ayatollah Mohsen Araki: A member of the Assembly of Experts.

4. Ayatollah Gholam Hossein Mohseni Ejei: Iran’s judiciary chief and former intelligence official.

5. Ayatollah Hashem Hosseini Bushehri: Friday prayer leader in Qom and member of the Assembly of Experts.

Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Iran's supreme leader since 1989 and sworn enemy of the West, was killed in the opening salvo of a massive US and Israeli attack that extended into a second day on 1 March, as the two powers seek to topple the Islamic Republic.