Who’s who in Iran? Guide to the Islamic republic’s top leaders

TEHRAN – The killing of Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei in Israeli strikes has mobilised every branch of Iran’s sprawling state apparatus in a fight for survival.

Power is carefully distributed among a series of councils, commanders, clerics and civilians. Some are elected, some appointed, but all must jostle for influence under the leader’s oversight. 

Here’s a run-down of who’s who in the Islamic Republic at one of the most pivotal moments in its 47-year history.

Mojtaba Khamenei

Iranian clerics elected Iran’s late supreme leader Khamenei’s second-oldest son, Mojtaba, to succeed him, signalling the continuity of his father’s hardline rule at home and anti-US foreign policy.

A cleric sanctioned by the US, the younger Mr Khamenei has become increasingly visible in recent years amid speculation about his ageing father’s health. 

He is considered close to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and Iran’s regional militia allies like the Hezbollah and Hamas. He oversees a sprawling investment empire stretching from Tehran to Dubai and Frankfurt, Bloomberg reported in January. He did not respond to requests for comment at the time.

Ali Larijani

Mr Larijani is an influential insider, former Speaker of Parliament and nuclear envoy. As a former commander of the IRGC, he has the ear of leaders of the powerful military force. 

He was close to the elder Mr Khamenei, although a presidential bid in 2024 was blocked by a clerical vetting body. The US imposed additional sanctions on him for his role in the latest crackdown.

Mr Larijani’s profile has grown since his appointment to lead the country’s top security body in August 2025, thanks first to the nuclear talks with the US and now to the war that cut them short. Since the start of the conflict, he’s been linked to efforts – that he denied – to reach out to Washington for talks.

Masoud Pezeshkian

The formal role of the president is largely confined to domestic economic policy. Mr Pezeshkian also sat on the three-person interim council that ruled until the selection of the new supreme leader.

A reformist, Mr Pezeshkian was elected in 2024 after the death of hardline President Ebrahim Raisi. After the recent protests, he encouraged the late Supreme Leader Khamenei to address public grievances, but was unsuccessful – a sign of his limited influence.

Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf

Mr Qalibaf’s position in Parliament gives him a seat on the influential Supreme National Security Council, and his profile has risen since the 12-day war with Israel and the US in June 2025.

He was previously mayor of Tehran and an IRGC commander. He also ran in several presidential elections, but never got far. He congratulated the Guards for crushing the recent protests, which he described as orchestrated by the US and Israel. 

Ahmad Vahidi

A veteran of the Guards, Brigadier-General Vahidi previously served as interior and defence minister. He’s under an Interpol red notice for his alleged participation in the Jewish community centre bombing in Buenos Aires in 1994. The US has sanctioned him for his role overseeing the suppression of protests in Iran in 2022.

He was promoted from deputy commander after his predecessor, Major-General Mohammad Pakpour, was killed in the opening salvos of the war.

Abbas Araghchi

A respected and experienced career diplomat – both inside and outside the country – Mr Araghchi is considered a pragmatic technocrat. 

He has worked for different administrations, pushed for talks with the US and led nuclear negotiations, while cautioning in the latest round that Iran was prepared for war if necessary. He’s also a former IRGC member and a staunch supporter of the Islamic Republic’s core policies. 

Gholam-Hossein Mohseni-Ejei

The head of the judiciary and second member of the interim leadership council. A cleric appointed by the supreme leader, Mr Ejei had been the elder Khamenei’s enforcer. As a prosecutor, he targeted dissenters and dissidents. As intelligence minister, he rooted out what he called “soft subversion” by arresting academics and researchers. 

The EU and US have sanctioned him, alleging human rights abuses. In January, he vowed to speed up the prosecution of protesters.

Alireza Arafi

Ayatollah Arafi was the third and final person on the interim council. Unlike the president and judiciary chief, who are automatically appointed per the constitution, Ayatollah Arafi was the discretionary third member. He was selected by the Expediency Discernment Council – an advisory body to the leader – indicating strong support among elites.

Considered a staunch loyalist aligned with Ayatollah Khamenei, Ayatollah Arafi is less well-known among the public, but has strong clerical credentials, having been a leader of Friday prayers in the key seminary city of Qom. 

He also ran the city’s Al-Mustafa International University, which the US sanctioned for being a recruitment platform for the IRGC’s expeditionary Quds Force.

Hassan Khomeini

Mr Hassan Khomeini is the grandson of the Islamic Republic’s founder, Ruhollah Khomeini. 

While a loyalist, he is perceived as a relative moderate for his association with reformists who were increasingly ostracised from power under Ayatollah Khamenei. BLOOMBERG