Tehran indicates Khamenei’s son will be named supreme leader as Israel expands Iran strikes

Iran on Sunday indicated it had chosen Ayatollah Ali Khamenei’s son Mojtaba Khamenei, 56, as his successor, after Israel struck fuel depots in Tehran overnight and the conflict widened after Bahrain said an Iranian attack had damaged one of its desalination plants.“The name of Khamenei will continue,” said Ayatollah Hosseinali Eshkevari, a member of the clerical council charged with electing a new leader, in a video published in Iranian media.“The vote has been cast and will be announced soon,” Eshkevari said, without providing further details.The council’s secretary, Hosseini Bushehri, would announce the ‌successor to Ayatollah Ali Khamenei – who was killed earlier in the conflict – Ahmad Alamolhoda, another cleric, told state media.Hossein Redaei, a member of the body, said it had gathered the votes for the next supreme leader but said it had not been deemed appropriate to hold a public and in-person gathering given the wartime conditions.US President Donald Trump said on Sunday Washington should have a say in the selection. “If he doesn’t get approval from us he’s not going to last long,” he told ABC News.