Following the death of Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei in a joint U.S.-Israeli military strike, Iran has activated its constitutional emergency plan.
Ayatollah Alireza Arafi, a 67-year-old senior cleric, has been appointed to lead a temporary council that will manage the country until a permanent successor is chosen.
Under Iranian law (Article 111), the Supreme Leader’s duties are now shared by a three-member council.
Arafi will work alongside President Masoud Pezeshkian and Chief Justice Gholamhossein Mohseni-Ejei.
As a prominent member of the Guardian Council and the head of Iran’s Islamic seminaries, Arafi was chosen to provide the religious authority required for the role.
This council is strictly temporary. Their job is to keep the government running smoothly while the Assembly of Experts (a group of senior scholars) meets to elect a new, permanent Supreme Leader.
The transition began immediately after it was confirmed that a massive airstrike involving 30 bombs hit Khamenei's compound on Saturday, killing him and several family members.
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