Three days after his appointment as Iran's supreme leader, Mojtaba Khamenei faces speculation about leg injuries from the war's outset and the deaths of family members, which Iranian officials deny, as the country grapples with ongoing US and Israeli strikes.
Following the Assembly of Experts' announcement on March 8 selecting Mojtaba Khamenei, son of the late Ali Khamenei, as Iran's new supreme leader—coverage of which appeared in prior reporting—Mojtaba, 56, has yet to appear publicly or issue statements, fueling rumors.
The New York Times, citing Israeli intelligence and anonymous Iranian sources, reported that Mojtaba sustained leg injuries on the first day of the war (February 28, when his father was killed in a US-Israeli airstrike on his Tehran residence) and is recovering in a secure location with limited communication. Iranian media have alluded to him as a 'war veteran injured,' and it is claimed his mother, wife, and one son also perished in attacks.
Iranian authorities reject these reports. Yusef Pezeshkian, advisor and son of President Masud Pezeshkian, told Etemad newspaper: 'I heard that Mr. Mojtaba had been injured. I checked with contacts, and they confirmed he is fine.' This opacity persists amid continued bombings and international evacuations, including Mexico's relocation of its Tehran embassy to Azerbaijan and evacuation of 1,009 citizens.
Mojtaba's appointment highlights the Revolutionary Guard's dominance over sectors like oil, finance, and telecoms. Bloomberg reports him as a multimillionaire owning 13 London properties worth 236 million euros. Tensions remain high, with prior US demands for approval from President Trump rejected by Tehran.
