IRAN ESTABLISHES ACTING LEADERSHIP COUNCIL TO OVERSEE TRANSITION OF POWER UNTIL NEXT LEADER IS SELECTED

A senior Iranian security official announced on Sunday that the country will establish an interim leadership council later in the day to manage state affairs until a new Supreme Leader is appointed.

Ali Larijani, Secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, made the remarks in an interview with state-run IRIB TV, hours after Iran confirmed the death of Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei in strikes carried out by the United States and Israel on Saturday in Tehran.

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Citing Article 111 of Iran’s Constitution, Larijani explained that in the absence of a Supreme Leader, the president, the head of the judiciary, and a jurist from the Constitutional Council will temporarily assume the leadership duties. He added that the interim council would be formed as quickly as possible.

Larijani noted that the nation is grieving and angry, warning that Israel aims to divide Iran to dominate the West Asia region, while the United States has fallen into what he called Israel’s strategic trap. He further claimed that despite U.S. President Donald Trump’s “America First” stance, Israel remains the top priority for the United States.

The official’s comments followed joint U.S. and Israeli strikes on Tehran and other Iranian cities, including Tabriz, Qom, Isfahan, Kermanshah, and Karaj, on Saturday morning. In retaliation, Iran launched missile and drone strikes targeting Israel and U.S. bases across the region.

The attacks reportedly killed several senior Iranian officials, including Chief of Staff of the Iranian Armed Forces Abdolrahim Mousavi, Defence Minister Aziz Nasirzadeh, Secretary of the Defence Council Ali Shamkhani, and Mohammad Pakpour, commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.