Iran Crisis: Iran is currently facing a leadership vacuum after its Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, was killed in Israel-US strikes on Saturday. After days of speculation, Iranian media reports on Wednesday claimed that Khamenei's son, Mojtaba Khamenei, has been elected as the next Supreme Leader of Iran. However, these claims were dismissed soon by the Iranian government, which stated that such reports were of "no official source."
This raises a question, whether Iran's power structure, comprising the clerical establishment and the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) are in a state of flux? Several reports claim that the IRGC has been backing Mojtaba Khamenei to take charge. IRGC's influence on leadership appointments is said to be at an all-time high, given the US and Israel's claims of killing several top leaders of the country.
Amid this volatile situation, the IRGC is reportedly exerting pressure on the Assembly of Experts, the clerical body responsible for choosing the Supreme Leader in Iran, to name Mojtaba as Ayatollah Khamenei's successor.
What is IRGC?
Also known as Iran's elite force, the Revolutionary Guards or Sepah was established by Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, the first Supreme Leader, in May 1979. The corps was established to protect the Islamic regime from internal and external threats. It operates as a parallel military, separate from the regular army, which is known as Artesh. The IRGC is directly answerable to the Supreme Leader. While in Iran, the IRGC has its own reputation, the corps has been designated as a terrorist organisation by countries including the United States, Canada, and Australia.
Why does IRGC want Mojtaba Khamenei to succeed?
The reason behind the IRGC wanting Mojtaba Khamenei to be elected as the Supreme Leader is to maintain the same power. Mojtaba is said to have deep ties with the IRGC. As he is said to be already experienced in running Iran's security and military network, the IRGC can trust him to align with their goals.
According to reports, Mojtaba, on occasions, has acted like a "shadow power" behind the regime, controlling key IRGC appointments and managing his father's inner circle. Due to the ongoing crisis, the IRGC wants to speed up leadership appointments to maintain continuity.
The IRGC recently appointed Ahmad Vahidi, an experienced security figure, as its new commander-in-chief. As the IRGC answers only to the Office of the Supreme Leader, it gets an upper edge to ensure that all high-level appointments align with its ideological principles. While the IRGC doesn't directly elect leaders, its backing or opposition can strongly affect which candidates succeed, especially in presidential elections.
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