Reports have emerged that Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has nominated three potential successors in case he is assassinated.
On the 21st (local time), The New York Times (NYT) reported this, citing three anonymous Iranian officials knowledgeable about Khamenei's 'emergency wartime plan.'
According to NYT, Khamenei has instructed the clergy body 'Expediency Council for the Leadership' that elects the national supreme leader to swiftly appoint one of the three candidates he designated in case he is assassinated.
Typically, it takes months to elect a supreme leader in Iran. However, this time, the unique situation of being at war with Israel has led to a focus on 'orderly and rapid succession.'
Included in this pool of candidates is not Khamenei's son, Mojtaba Khamenei.
Currently, Khamenei is known to be hiding in an underground bunker to evade Israeli airstrikes. He has acknowledged the possibility of being killed, and in such a case, he would accept it as 'martyrdom,' Iranian officials reported.
NYT commented, 'Khamenei's refuge in a bunker is a signal of how severely Tehran has been hit in the war with Israel,' adding that '(designating a successor) starkly illustrates how unstable Khamenei and his 30-year reign are facing this moment of crisis.'
Bali Nasr, a U.S. expert on Iran from Johns Hopkins University, also analyzed, 'Iran's top priority is national preservation,' noting that 'all measures are being taken practically.'
Furthermore, NYT reported that concerns about assassination and infiltration are spreading among Iran's high-ranking officials. Previously, the Iranian Supreme National Security Council warned, 'Anyone cooperating with the enemy must turn themselves in and return weapons to the authorities by midnight on the 22nd,' stating, 'Those caught committing treason will face the death penalty.'