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Iran's Assembly of Experts has chosen a new supreme leader to succeed Ali Khamenei, multiple members of the clerical body confirmed Sunday, though the name of the successor has not yet been officially announced.
The decision came despite Israeli threats to target anyone involved in the selection process.
"The vote to appoint the leader has taken place, and the leader has been chosen," said Ahmad Alam al-Hoda, a member of the Assembly of Experts, as quoted by Iran's Mehr news agency.
He said the body's secretariat would announce the name later.
Alam al-Hoda said rumors suggesting the Assembly had not yet reached a decision were "pure lies." He said it was now up to the Assembly's secretariat, headed by Hosseini Bushehri, to make the formal announcement.
Mohsen Heydari, who represents Khuzestan province in the Assembly, confirmed that "the most suitable candidate, approved by the majority of the Assembly of Experts, has been determined," according to Iran's ISNA news agency.
Heydari added a pointed reference to the United States: "The 'Great Satan' has also mentioned the name of the choice made by the representatives."
The remark appeared to allude to U.S. President Donald Trump, who said earlier this week that Mojtaba Khamenei, the late supreme leader's 56-year-old son, was the most likely successor but dismissed him as "a lightweight" and said the choice was "unacceptable."
Another Assembly member, Mohammad-Mahdi Mirbagheri, confirmed in a video carried by the Fars news agency that "a firm opinion reflecting the majority view has been reached."
He said members were proceeding with precision despite "difficult circumstances" and remaining "obstacles."
Heydari said the candidate had been chosen based on the late supreme leader's advice that his successor should "be hated by the enemy" rather than praised by it.
The Assembly's decision came hours after the Israeli military's Farsi-language account on X issued a direct threat to members of the body.
"We wish to inform you that the State of Israel will continue to closely monitor any successor and anyone seeking to appoint one," the Israeli army stated, adding that "we warn all those considering taking part in this meeting to select the successor that we will not hesitate to target you."
While no official announcement has been made, Assembly members' comments strongly suggested Mojtaba Khamenei had been selected.
He has close ties to Iran's elite Revolutionary Guards and has long been seen as one of the top candidates to succeed his father, who became a supreme leader in 1989 and ruled for 37 years before being killed on Feb. 28.
Though Mojtaba Khamenei holds no formal public office, he is widely regarded as the most influential of Khamenei's children.
He was sanctioned by the U.S. Treasury in 2019 and has been linked to the Basij paramilitary force used to suppress protests after Iran's disputed 2009 election.
The supreme leader is the highest political and religious authority in Iran, holding final say on all matters of state. Since Khamenei's death, a three-person leadership council comprising President Masoud Pezeshkian, judiciary chief Gholamhossein Mohseni Ejei, and Basij head Alireza Arafi has been governing temporarily.
The United States and Israel launched military strikes against Iran on Feb. 28, killing Khamenei.
Iran has retaliated with missile and drone strikes targeting Israel and Gulf countries hosting U.S. military assets.
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