Ali Khamenei’s death left Iran leaderless in a difficult time when it is fighting against the U.S. and Israel. But it seems the country has entered a new political chapter after his son, Mojtaba Khamenei, was selected to succeed him, nearly a week after his death. He was chosen after a careful discussion by the powerful clerical body, better known as the Assembly of Experts in Iran. Notably, it is a rare generational leadership change in the country’s highest leadership role. While everyone is now eyeing the new leader, public interest has shifted to the late wife.
Who was Mojtaba Khamenei’s wife, Zahra Haddad-Adel?
Mojtaba Khamenei’s wife, Zahra Khamenei, was the daughter of a renowned Iranian conservative politician, Gholam-Ali Haddad-Adel. Her father played a significant role in Iranian politics and was a former Speaker of the Iranian Parliament. Subsequently, their union was considered as a way to improve ties between two powerful conservative families in Iran. She married Mojtaba in 1999, mainly to secure a strategic alliance between the office of Iran’s supreme leader and a major political group under her father.
