Iran has appointed Ayatollah Alireza Arafi as its interim supreme leader, a pivotal step in the country’s leadership transition following the death of longtime leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in joint US–Israeli airstrikes on Tehran early Saturday.
Arafi, a senior cleric and a long-time insider in Iran’s religious and political hierarchy, now faces the challenge of steering the Islamic Republic during a period of heightened regional tensions and internal uncertainty.
