By Nana Karikari, Senior Global Affairs Correspondent
The Iranian Assembly of Experts has officially appointed Mojtaba Khamenei as the country’s third supreme leader. The 56-year-old cleric succeeds his father, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who was killed in recent US-Israeli strikes. State media confirmed the selection followed a unanimous vote by the 88-member body of senior clerics. The Assembly urged citizens to “maintain unity around the principle of Velayat-e Faqih” despite what it described as severe wartime conditions.
Mojtaba Khamenei holds deep ties to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and the Basij paramilitary force, though experts note that he has not yet attained the high-ranking title of Ayatollah. Despite having no prior official role in the regime, he was sanctioned by the US in 2019. The US Treasury previously accused him of working closely with the IRGC-Quds Force to advance his father’s “destabilizing regional ambitions and oppressive domestic objectives.” Former CIA Director David Petraeus described the pick as “unfortunate,” noting that many had hoped for a leader who was “more pragmatic.”
Trump warns new leadership will not last
President Donald Trump described the appointment of the younger Khamenei as “unacceptable.” Speaking from Washington, Trump suggested the new leader would require US approval to remain in power. “If he doesn’t get approval from us he’s not going to last long,” Trump told ABC News. The president emphasized a desire for a leader who would bring harmony to the region, while Israel vowed to continue pursuing anyone attempting to appoint a successor. An Israeli official expressed doubt that “the Iranian people want to replace one Ayatollah with another.” In Tehran, top security official Ali Larijani dismissed Trump’s stance as an “international miscalculation,” warning that the U.S. is “stuck in the quagmire” of its own making.
Oil prices breach century mark amid transit fears
Global energy markets reacted sharply to the escalation and threats to regional infrastructure. US crude futures surged past $100 per barrel (approx. 1,076 GHS) on Sunday, the first time prices have crossed that threshold since the 2022 invasion of Ukraine. Brent futures also rose, hitting $104 per barrel (approx. 1,119 GHS). Dismissing concerns over the spike, President Trump posted on Truth Social that the higher costs are “a very small price to pay for U.S.A., and World, Safety and Peace. ONLY FOOLS WOULD THINK DIFFERENTLY!”
Domestically, the average price of gasoline reached $3.45 a gallon (approx. 37.12 GHS), a 16 percent increase from the prior week. Despite the rise, Energy Secretary Chris Wright told CNN that fuel remains “$1.50 a gallon (approx. 16.14 GHS) cheaper than it was in the middle of the Biden administration,” while White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt described the surge as a “short-term disruption.”
US service member deaths rise to seven
US Central Command confirmed a seventh service member has died from wounds sustained in the conflict. The individual passed away following a March 1 attack on US positions in Saudi Arabia. This follows the recent dignified transfer of six other soldiers at Dover Air Force Base. When asked if more casualties were expected, President Trump stated, “I’m sure. I hate to … but it’s a part of war.” Meanwhile, the human cost inside Iran has escalated sharply, with the Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA) reporting that at least 1,205 civilians killed, including 194 children.
Evidence mounts regarding school strike responsibility
New video footage has emerged appearing to show a US Tomahawk missile striking a target near a school in Minab. The strike reportedly killed more than 160 students last month. Weapons experts noted the munition fits the visual profile of US Navy assets. “It fits the visual characteristics of a TLAM,” said Sam Lair of the James Martin Center for Nonproliferation Studies. President Trump had previously attributed the incident to inaccurate Iranian fire, stating, “Based on what I’ve seen, that was done by Iran.” The White House has not ruled out that US military personnel carried out the strike, though Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth noted the military is investigating. US Central Command has warned Iranian citizens that the regime is putting them at risk by launching munitions from “heavily populated civilian areas.”
Israel targets senior Iranian commanders in Beirut
The Israeli military announced the elimination of several high-ranking Quds Force commanders in Lebanon. The strike targeted a hotel in Beirut where the officials were reportedly meeting. In Southern Lebanon, the Israeli military reported its first combat fatalities of the war, confirming two soldiers were killed and 14 others injured during border clashes. In a separate naval engagement, Iran reported that 104 crew members were killed when the warship IRIS Dena was sunk by a US submarine.
Conflict enters new phase of regional escalation
An Iranian official warned that the war has reached a “new phase” following hits on domestic fuel depots. The Israeli military confirmed “wide-scale” strikes targeting the headquarters of the IRGC aerospace force. Tehran threatened to retaliate by targeting energy infrastructure throughout the Middle East, with IRGC spokespersons stating that 60 percent of their firepower is now prioritized for “punishing” US assets. In Al-Kharj, Saudi Arabia, a military projectile killed an Indian and a Bangladeshi national, marking the first reported deaths in the kingdom during this conflict. Hostile drones also targeted fuel storage at Kuwait International Airport and damaged a desalination plant in Bahrain. Amid the escalation, French President Emmanuel Macron stated in an X post that he urged Iranian President Massoud Pezeshkian towards a diplomatic solution to “put an end to the escalation and preserve peace.”
African Economies Bracing for Impact
The shockwaves of the Iranian conflict are already being felt across the African continent, where the surge in global crude prices threatens to destabilize fragile post-pandemic recoveries. In nations like Ghana and Kenya, the rising cost of landing petroleum products is expected to trigger a fresh wave of inflationary pressure, impacting everything from transport fares to the price of basic food staples. Economists warn that if the Strait of Hormuz remains a primary theater of war, the resulting disruption to global trade routes could lead to severe currency depreciation and heightened fiscal deficits for import-dependent African states.
As the nine-day conflict shifts from a series of tactical strikes into a broader regional war of attrition, the installation of Mojtaba Khamenei signals a defiant consolidation of power within Tehran. With global energy security hanging in the balance at the Strait of Hormuz and diplomatic channels through London and Paris strained by escalating rhetoric, the Middle East stands at what Omani officials call a “dangerous turning point.” Whether the younger Khamenei’s leadership brings the “harmony” demanded by Washington or cements a new era of hardline resistance remains the central, unanswered question of the unfolding war.
