With Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Iran's supreme leader, dead, Iran formed a three-person interim Leadership Council under the constitution. The council will exercise the powers of the supreme leader until the next supreme leader is chosen.
State-run IRNA reported on the 1st (local time) that, under Article 111 of the constitution, President Masoud Pezeshkian, Judiciary Chief Gholamhossein Mohseni Ejei, and Guardian Council Commissioner Ayatollah Alireza Arafi formed the Leadership Council.
Mohammad Mokhber, the former first vice president known as one of Khamenei's closest aides, also confirmed the development. Under the constitution, when the supreme leader is incapacitated or dies, the Assembly of Experts must swiftly elect a successor.
However, local experts say that, apart from official bodies, former Vice President Mokhber and Ali Larijani, secretary of the Supreme National Security Council, could wield practical influence in a wartime situation.
Arafi, who joined as the Guardian Council's share, is a senior cleric and Islamic jurist trusted by Khamenei and has been mentioned as a candidate for the next supreme leader. He is also a member of the Assembly of Experts, which has the authority to choose the supreme leader.
Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf said, "Our military and administrative structures have already been systematized away from personality-centered leadership," adding, "We have prepared for all scenarios, including the situation after Khamenei's martyrdom."
Secretary Larijani also said on state television that the Leadership Council was officially launched that day and began work. The Assembly of Experts was also reportedly convened to select the next supreme leader.