Mojtaba Khamenei, center, the son of the Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, in 2019.Credit…Rouzbeh Fouladi/Middle East Images, via Agence France-Presse — Getty Images
- Iran’s military and political leaders have pledged allegiance to Mojtaba Khamenei, who has been named to replace his father, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, as the country’s new supreme leader.
- The US and Israel continue to bombard Iran, with explosions reported in Qom and Tehran, hours after Israeli attacks on oil facilities caused toxic smoke across the Iranian capital.
Mojtaba Khamenei is named as Iran’s new supreme leader, state media reports
He replaces his father, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who was killed at his compound in Tehran in the first wave of US and Israeli strikes
US Central Command says a seventh US service member has died from injuries sustained during Iran’s initial attack across the Middle East last week
Meanwhile, the price of crude oil has risen above $110 (£82) a barrel as the Strait of Hormuz, a critical chokepoint for shipments, remains effectively closed
Lebanon’s death toll from Israeli strikes has risen to nearly 400, according to the government’s health minister
Our reporter writes one hospital received patients and bodies early this morning after an Israeli strike on a village in the south of the country
Iranians have described scenes in Tehran after oil depots were hit by intense aerial bombardment, with one woman saying “you can smell the burning”
A Saudi Arabia official says two people have been killed after a projectile hit a residential area
Three killed, 15 wounded in Israeli attack on Lebanon
The Lebanese Ministry of Health says at least three people have been killed and 15 others wounded in an Israeli attack on southern Tayr Debba.
We’ll bring you more soon.
The latest killings come hours after the health authorities reported that at least three people were killed and 16 others wounded in an Israeli raid on the nearby town of Joya.
Ending war will be ‘mutual’ decision with Netanyahu, Trump sayspublished at 07:15
US President Donald Trump says a decision on when to end the war with Iran will be a “mutual” one he will make with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, according to a report by the Times of Israel.
Trump, who was speaking in a phone interview, said the pair had “been talking”, adding that he would “make a decision at the right time”.
Asked whether Israel could continue the war against Iran if the US decided to stop its strikes, Trump declined to entertain the possibility, adding: “I don’t think its going to be necessary”.
When asked about Mojtaba Khamenei being named as the country’s new supreme leader, Trump also declined to comment, saying: “We’ll see what happens”.
Trump has previously made his opposition to Mojtaba known, saying: “Khamenei’s son is unacceptable to me”.
Global oil prices rise further as conflict escalatespublished at 06:52
Peter Hoskins
Business reporter, Singapore
Image source,Andalou via Getty ImagesGlobal oil prices have continued to soar above $100 (£75.11) a barrel as the escalating US-Israeli war with Iran fuels fears of prolonged disruption to shipments through the Strait of Hormuz.
By mid morning in Asia, Brent crude was almost 24% higher at $114.74, while Nymex light sweet was up by more than 26% at $114.78.
About a fifth of the world’s oil supply is usually shipped through the Strait of Hormuz. But traffic through the narrow passage has all but halted since the war started a week ago.
Major disruption to energy supplies from the region threatens to push up prices for consumers and businesses around the world.
‘They don’t even need to change the chants’, says a resident of Tehranpublished at 06:26
Ghoncheh Habibiazad
Senior reporter, BBC Persian
Image source,Getty ImagesA little earlier I asked three residents of the capital, Tehran, all men in their 30s, how they feel about the appointment of Mojtaba Khamenei as the supreme leader of Iran.
It is very difficult to get in touch with people inside Iran amid the internet outage, but some are able to connect momentarily. I have kept the details as vague as possible to protect their identities.
“Even the thinnest of chances for a change are no more within the system. The assembly could not select anyone else to be this close to the former leader. So everything will remain much the same, they don’t even need to change their chants to support the name”, one man said.
“He’s vengeful. They have killed his father and he won’t let go. If he can’t get revenge from the US, he will get his revenge from us ordinary people. I hope that Israel and the US will target him”, said another man.
“This means that nothing is going to change. It’s the same path, even worse. Anyhow, I don’t think that the situation will continue. I don’t think that he will last”, said the third person.
Middle East crisis triggers market circuit breaker in South Koreapublished at 05:49
Nick Marsh
Asia Business Reporter, SingaporeSouth Korea’s stock market operator has issued a circuit breaker on the country’s main stock exchange, after its main index, the Kospi, dropped by 8%.
The Korea Exchange ordered a 20 minute pause starting at 10:31 local time (01:31 GMT).
It did the same last Wednesday when the Kospi plunged by more than 12%. The circuit breaker is automatically triggered when it moves by 8% or more.
Earlier in the day, the KRX activated what’s known as a sell-side sidecar, suspending sales for five minutes. It’s triggered when the KOSPI 200 Futures index moves 5% or more for at least one minute.
South Korea is major importer of Middle Eastern natural gas, as well as oil.
In Asian trade this morning, crude oil jumped well above $100 a barrel, in response to the escalating conflict in the Middle East and the prolonged de facto closure of the Strait of Hormuz.
At least 32 injured in Bahrain after drone attack – state mediapublished at 05:25
BreakingAt least 32 people were injured in Bahrain after an Iranian drone attack near the capital, according to a report by the state owned Bahrain News Agency.
The report, which quoted the Ministry of Health, said that all those injured were Bahraini citizens – including a 17-year-old girl who suffered severe head and eye injuries. The youngest person injured was a two-month-old.
Of those injured, four were “serious cases”, the report added, which included children that required surgery.
Explosions heard across Gulf states, reports saypublished at 05:04
Explosions were heard in Bahrain and Kuwait, according to a post by Iranian state broadcaster IRIB on its Telegram channel.
In an earlier post, IRIB said sirens had been heard in Bahrain, but did not provide any further detail.
Seperately, AFP journalists said they had heard “several explosions” in the Qatari capital of Doha on Monday, as Qatar’s defence ministry said its forces had intercepted a missile attack in the early hours of the morning.
US ‘willing to go as far as we need’, says Hegsethpublished at 04:46
Image source,Getty ImagesUS Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth says the US is “willing to go as far as we need to be successful” in the war with Iran.
“You don’t tell the enemy, you don’t tell the press, you don’t tell anybody what your limits would be on an operation,” he says in an interview with the BBC’s US partner CBS’s 60 Minutes.
Hegseth says the US is “fighting to win” and Donald Trump will “set the terms” of Iran’s surrender.
“We’ll know they are not capable of fighting… whether they know it or not, they will be combat ineffective, they will surrender.”
Iran’s navy, Hegseth adds, is “largely no more” and will continue to diminish.
“This is only just the beginning.”
Iran launches first missiles at Israel under new leaderpublished at 04:13
Image source,ReutersIran has launched its first wave of missiles under its new leader Mojtaba Khamenei, state broadcaster IRIB said in a post on its Telegram channel.
It also posted a picture of a projectile bearing the slogan: “At Your Service, Sayyid Mojtaba”.
Mojtaba Khamenei’s appointment is a fight for survival for the regimepublished at 03:56
Jeremy Bowen
International Editor
Image source,ReutersMojtaba Khamenei’s name has been mentioned in the past as a possible candidate, but we have to remember that everybody inside Iran whether or not they’re in the regime, whether or not they support the regime, is under immense pressure right now.
While Mojtaba Khamenei has got the job, he clearly is not going to have the same powerful position as his father who built his influence up over 40 years.
His job now might be trying to referee between the different splits within the senior parts of the regime.
We’ve heard very different messages coming out from the president and others as well, and this is just another layer of change, uncertainty and difficulty in this war, which in only a week has produced a great deal of all of the above.
But from the perspective of the 88 member clerical body that selected Mojtaba Khamenei, it’s a fight for survival.
He was known as his father’s gatekeeper so he must have known a great deal of what was going on inside the regime.
Mojtaba Khamenei was someone who was essentially in the office, even if he wasn’t in the right chair, he’s now behind the desk.
Stock markets slide as oil prices soarpublished at 03:49
Peter Hoskins
Business reporter, SingaporeShares prices are falling sharply across the Asia-Pacific region in early morning trading after oil jumped above $100 a barrel for the first time in four years.
Japan’s Nikkei 225 fell by more than 6%, the Kospi was more than 7% lower while the ASX 200 in Australia was almost 4% lower.
Fresh waves of US and Israeli airstrikes on Iran over the week have increased concerns that major disruption to energy supplies from the region threatens to push up prices for consumers and businesses around the world.
Oil price spike likely to increase petrol pricespublished at 03:27
Faisal Islam
Economics editor
Image source,ReutersAs we told you a little earlier, the price of a barrel of crude oil has surged in early Asian trade, breaching the $100 mark, at one point hitting $111 a barrel, up 20% in a matter of minutes.
Many in the markets predicted that oil would hit the $100 a barrel mark this week. In the event it took about a minute to jump 10%, and then another 15 minutes to rise a further 10% in early Asian trading.
Last week the markets had been relatively relaxed about the seeming nightmare scenario for millions of barrels of crude and liquefied gas to be trapped in the Gulf, with tankers unable or unwilling to transit the Strait of Hormuz. But the escalations over the weekend, alongside scenes of destruction of energy infrastructure both in Iran and across the Gulf, saw the markets take rapid fright.
The question now is where does this go? Some analysts argue that if the shutdown in the Strait lasts until the end of March, record oil prices above $150 a barrel could occur.
The existing rise is likely to further increase petrol prices, and important derivative products such as jet fuel and vital precursors for fertilisers.
The physical supplies from the Gulf are mainly consumed in Asia. Already, however, there are signs that Asian consumers are bidding up prices for US gas, with some tankers originally heading for Europe turning around in the mid Atlantic.
US orders embassy staff to leave Saudi Arabiapublished at 03:07
With the Gulf states continuing to see drone attacks from Iran, the US State Department is ordering non-emergency US government employees and US government employee family members to leave Saudi Arabia, citing safety risks.
The department is also repeating its call for its citizens to reconsider travel to Saudi Arabia, citing “risk of Iranian drone and missile targeting of American interests, armed conflict, terrorism, exit bans and local laws regarding social media activity”.
Watch: Regime supporters celebrate Khamenei’s electionpublished at 02:52
Media caption, Supporters of the Iranian regime celebrate announcement of new supreme leader
Supporters of the Iranian regime have taken to the streets to celebrate their new supreme leader.
Mojtaba Khamenei will replace his father, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei – who was killed in the first wave of US and Israeli strikes last week – as the country’s spiritual leader and highest authority.
Many expect he will continue his father’s hardline policies.
Trump says rise in oil prices ‘very small price to pay’published at 02:30
Image source,EPAUS President Donald Trump says a sharp increase in oil prices (see earlier post) due to the conflict in the Middle East will correct itself and is a small price to pay for global security.
“Short term oil prices, which will drop rapidly when the destruction of the Iran nuclear threat is over, is a very small price to pay for USA and World, Safety and Peace,” he writes in a post on Truth Social.
“ONLY FOOLS WOULD THINK DIFFERENTLY!”
The increase in price of crude oil is the highest since the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
Message of defiance by picking a man Trump called ‘unacceptable’published at 02:20
Lyse Doucet
Chief international correspondent
Image source,EPAThe son who worked for decades in the shadow of his father has assumed his mantle, in his conservative mould.
Mojtaba Khamenei is also closely linked to Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps, the powerful paramilitary force he joined straight out of high school before studying with senior clerics.
It’s that continuity and connection that pulled him to the helm.
Two years ago, his father had ruled his son out of the succession, shunning the hereditary rule of the monarchy they ousted. But the besieged clerical rule he left behind is now fighting an existential battle.
The real power now calling the shots is the hardline IRGC who control every lever of power.
Iranians who denounced his father as a dictator will hope his son’s days are numbered.
But he sends a message of defiance to President Trump who called him “unacceptable”, and to Israel who’s vowed to kill him too.
Oil price tops $100 a barrelpublished at 01:45
Peter Hoskins
Business reporter, SingaporeThe price of crude oil rose above $100 (£75) a barrel on Sunday after major energy producers in the Middle East cut production.
This was in response to the Strait of Hormuz, one of the world’s most critical chokepoints for oil and gas shipments, staying effectively closed due to the US-Israeli war with Iran.
Brent crude was 18% higher at $108.68 a barrel. The US oil, WTI, increased by almost 20% to $108 a barrel.
This is the highest jump since the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, when the price of crude soared well above $100 a barrel.
IRGC ‘ready for complete obedience’ to new supreme leader – Iranian mediapublished at 01:22
Iran’s state broadcaster Irib and the semi-official, IRGC-affilitated Tasnim news agency have both shared a statement credited to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps welcoming the appointment of Mojtaba Khamenei.
The statement describes Khamenei as an “all-encompassing jurist, a young thinker and the most knowledgeable on political and social issues”.
The IRGC also says it declares its “respect, devotion and obedience” to Khamenei, saying that its members are “ready for complete obedience and self-sacrifice in carrying out the divine commands of the Guardian Jurist”.
For context: The IRGC is an armed force charged with protecting and preserving the Islamic Republic, and influences all its levers of power, from security to the economy.
New supreme leader chosen in spite of threats – Iran security chiefpublished at 01:15
The secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council has thanked the Assembly of Experts for selecting Ali Khamenei’s successor despite “Trump’s threat to bomb it”, according to multiple Iranian news agencies.
Ali Larijani says Tehran’s “enemies” thought the country would “reach a deadlock” following the death of Ali Khamenei but the Assembly ultimately proceeded with the selection of Mojtaba Khamenei.
What was Mojtaba Khamenei’s role in the Islamic Republic before becoming supreme leader?published at 00:54
Ghoncheh Habibiazad
Senior reporter, BBC Persian
Image source,Getty ImagesImage caption, Khamenei attending a demonstration in Tehran in 2019
Mojtaba Khamenei, 56, was regarded as exerting influence behind the scenes, and has been accused of having hands in presidential elections, commanding the Basij militia, and maintaining close ties with the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).
Despite reports and speculation about his considerable influence, he has not held any official position in the Islamic Republic.
Both his father Ali Khamenei and his predecessor, the founder of the Islamic Republic Ruhollah Khomeini, had criticised hereditary succession in the context of the Pahlavi monarchy, which was overthrown in the 1979 Islamic Revolution.
In 2019, Mojtaba Khamenei was sanctioned by the United States as part of a group of individuals “who are appointees of or have acted for or on behalf of” Iran’s then Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei.
US and Israel likely to object to Mojtaba Khamenei’s appointmentpublished at 00:47
Image source,IRINNImage caption, Photo of Mojtaba Khamenei shown on Iranian state TV following the announcement of his selection
Over the past week, and again earlier today, US President Donald Trump said he wanted to play a role in the selection of the new Iranian supreme leader.
While he signalled he would be open to someone linked to the old leadership taking over, he made clear his opposition to that someone being Mojtaba Khamenei – who’s just been confirmed as his father’s successor.
“Khamenei’s son is unacceptable to me,” Trump said earlier this week. And only a few hours ago, he said that, without his approval, whoever takes over is “not going to last long”.
Israel issued a warning before Khamenei’s second son was confirmed as the new supreme leader – saying that they will “continue to pursue every successor” to the late ayatollah.
BBC and Aljazeera
