The appointment of Mojtaba Khamenei, son of the slain Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, as Iran's new supreme leader defies President Trump and signals that Tehran won't back down as it fights a war with the U.S. and Israel.
The elevation of Mojtaba Khamenei, a conservative long close to Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, shows that Trump's efforts so far to cow the regime into surrender have failed.
He is expected to take a confrontational stance toward the West, and his appointment also shows that Iran won't acquiesce to Trump's demand that he approve the country's new top cleric.
The younger Khamenei's ascendance suggests the continuation of the same old strategy: repression at home and resistance internationally, said Sanam Vakil, director of the Middle East and North Africa program at Chatham House.
Iran launched a wave of missiles toward Israel, state media said, following his appointment.
The appointment of a new top cleric is important in signaling to Iranians and the world that the regime can still function, despite the risk.
The ability to appoint a new supreme leader defied the expectations of its enemies, said Ali Larijani, head of the national security council.
