As Iran weighs Khamenei’s successor, some question future of role
Iran faces uncertainty as the process of choosing Khamenei’s successor unfolds, with some experts saying that wartime conditions and the lack of a clear heir could prompt debate over whether the supreme leader’s office should continue in its traditional form.
The killing of Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, in an Israeli airstrike on Saturday has prompted fury and grief from parts of the Shiite world, with calls for revenge rising from Tehran and beyond.
In Karachi, at least 25 people died when hundreds of Shiite protesters clashed with police as they sought to storm the US Consulate on Sunday. Lebanon-based Hezbollah, Iran’s closest ally, fired rockets into southern Israel. Its leader, Naim Qassem, hailed Khamenei as a “divine leader” and heavenly guide and vowed to “not abandon the field of honor and resistance” regardless of the scale of sacrifice required.
Many of the world’s more than 200 million Shiites will be watching closely as Iran girds itself to select a new leader to replace the 86-year-old ethnic Azeri cleric who ruled over Iran for 37 years.
Amid feverish speculation over who will succeed Khamenei, another more critical question has emerged: Will there even be a successor? Will the office of the supreme leader continue to exist?
