Iran's New Leader Has Something in Common with Our President

"Iran is at its most vulnerable state since the 1979 revolution, and critics have previously railed against Mojtaba's rise, citing his limited formal experience, modest theological credentials and the regime's aversion to dynastic rule. Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps pledged allegiance to the new leader and said it's "ready to fully obey" his commands."

"Mojtaba is expected to be more hardline than his father, and his ascent means the Iranian regime may get more repressive. He has close ties to some of the most "ideologically extremist clerics" who have been at the forefront of the regime's most violent crackdowns, per the Council."

"A cleric, Mojtaba studied under the late Ayatollah Mohammad Taghi Mesbah Yazdi, who called for killing Iranian youths who promoted "Western immorality." Mojtaba joined the Revolutionary Guard at 17, serving during the Iran-Iraq War in the Habib Battalion. The battalion is a "notoriously ideological unit" led by one of the founders of Hezbollah."

Mojtaba Khamenei, born in 1969, is Ali Khamenei's second-eldest son and a cleric with limited formal experience and modest theological credentials. He studied under an extremist cleric, joined the Revolutionary Guard at 17, and served in the Habib Battalion during the Iran-Iraq War. The battalion is known as ideologically extreme, with many alumni becoming high-ranking security officials. Mojtaba is expected to be significantly more hardline than his father, with close ties to extremist clerics involved in violent crackdowns. He allegedly orchestrated the 2005 election installing Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and personally supervised the IRGC's suppression of 2009 election protests. His ascent suggests Iran's regime may become increasingly repressive.

Read at Esquire