The Ayatollah Is Dead. Long Live The Ayatollah (S01E22)

Monday, March 9, 2026, IstanbulWe don’t know a lot about Mujataba Khamenei, the son of Iran’s former leader, Ali Khamenei, who was killed in a US and Israeli airstrike on Feb. 28. What we do know is pretty ominous. We know that he lost his wife, mother, and son in that same airstrike that killed his father.We know that within Iran’s constellation of political factions he has long been known as a hardliner, and very close to the Revolutionary Guard. He served in the guard as a young man during the final years of the Iran-Iraq war. We know that Donald Trump publicly ruled him out as the country’s next supreme leader, only to be defiantly rebuked by the Tehran establishment. In fact, before the war, Khamenei was considered somewhat of a dark horse candidate in the running to succeed his dad. Trump’s clumsy attempt to meddle in Iranian affairs may have given Mujtaba the winning vote. We also know that tens of thousands of regime supporters—who probably make up about 20% of the Iranian population of 93 million—filled squares in Tehran and elsewhere on Monday to swear fealty to Khamenei, as they did to his dad. On France 24’s Debate show Monday evening (above), I and a small panel discussed the significance of Mujataba’s rise, as well as the latest developments in the war. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit borzou.substack.com/subscribe