Iran on Sunday named Ayatollah Alireza Arafi to an interim leadership council following the reported killing of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
“The Expediency Discernment Council has elected Ayatollah Alireza Arafi as a member of the interim leadership council,” said council spokesman Mohsen Dehnavi in a post on X. The council, which also includes the president and the head of the judiciary, will lead the country until the Assembly of Experts elects a permanent successor.
Iranian clerical leaders vowed vengeance for Khamenei’s death, with fresh attacks launched on Sunday in response to the US and Israeli strikes on Tehran on Saturday.
Join our WhatsApp ChannelPresident Masoud Pezeshkian described Khamenei’s killing as a “declaration of war against Muslims” and pledged retaliation, while security chief Ali Larijani warned the United States and Israel would face a force “never seen before.”
The Iranian army said its air forces had targeted US bases in Iraq’s Kurdistan region and in the Gulf in multiple phases, according to state television. Air raid sirens were also reported in Jerusalem as the Israeli military detected missiles launched from Iran.
Blasts were reported in Dubai, Bahrain’s capital Manama, and Qatar, where thick black smoke was seen on the horizon south of Doha.
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A senior Emirati official warned Iran that retaliation against Gulf states would be a “miscalculation,” stressing that the Islamic Republic’s conflict is “not with your neighbours.”
The appointment of Arafi and the interim leadership council comes as tensions in the region escalate following the strikes that the United States and Israel claim killed Khamenei, prompting fears of a wider Middle East conflict.
Prosper Okoye is a Correspondent and Research Writer at Prime Business Africa, a Nigerian journalist with experience in development reporting, public affairs, and policy-focused storytelling across Africa
