Ayatollah Alireza Arafi Joins Interim Leadership Council Amid Iran Conflict and Succession

Following the reported killing of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei amid U.S.-Israeli attacks on February 28, Ayatollah Alireza Arafi was appointed to a three-member interim leadership council alongside President Masoud Pezeshkian and Chief Justice Gholam-Hossein Mohseni-Ejei. The council is tasked with managing the ongoing conflict and overseeing the sensitive process of selecting Iran's next supreme leader. Arafi, a hardline cleric in his late 60s with strong ties to Khamenei, is less known internationally and lacks extensive political experience but is considered ideologically aligned with Khamenei and has held influential religious positions. His potential succession depends on approval by the Assembly of Experts amid pressures for swift leadership continuity.