'Target for elimination': Israel's warning for Iran's next supreme leader

Israel warned on Wednesday that whoever Iran selects as its next supreme leader will be “a target for elimination.”Israeli defence minister Israel Katz wrote on X, “Every leader appointed by the Iranian terror regime to continue and lead the plan to destroy Israel, to threaten the United States and the free world and the countries of the region, and to suppress the Iranian people—will be an unequivocal target for elimination.

”“It does not matter what his name is or the place where he hides. The Prime Minister and I have instructed the IDF to prepare and act by all means to carry out the mission as an integral part of the objectives of Operation 'Lion's Roar'. We will continue to act with full force, together with our American partners, to crush the regime's capabilities and create the conditions for the Iranian people to overthrow it and replace it,” he added.

The warning comes amid a major escalation in the region. On Saturday, a full-scale operation was launched targeting the Khamenei-led political establishment in Iran, with Israel joining under the codename Operation Lion’s Roar. The operation followed the killing of 86-year-old Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, which intensified the conflict.Follow US-Israel-Iran War Live UpdatesIsraeli media reported that Mojtaba Khamenei, son of the late Supreme Leader, has been chosen as his father’s successor.

Senior Israeli officials told Ynet news that Iran’s Assembly of Experts is expected to formally announce Mojtaba Khamenei in the coming hours, though Iran state media has not confirmed the development.Mojtaba Khamenei reportedly played a key role in running his late father’s office and maintains close ties with the top leadership of the IRGC and the Quds Force. Israeli media described him as more hard-line than his father and involved in violent crackdowns on protesters in Iran. In November 2019, the US Treasury Department sanctioned Mojtaba, noting that he represented the Supreme Leader in an official capacity and worked closely with the IRGC-QF and Basij Resistance Force to advance regional and domestic objectives.Meanwhile, the IDF said a new wave of airstrikes is underway against Hezbollah sites in Beirut. Civilians near two buildings linked to the group were instructed to keep at least 300 meters away. Earlier strikes in Tehran targeted command centres of Iran’s Basij paramilitary force and internal security forces, as well as Iranian army logistics sites, missile launchers, and air defence systems.Israel had previously targeted a building associated with Iran’s Assembly of Experts, the body responsible for selecting the new supreme leader, signaling the intensifying nature of the conflict.