Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has not only picked replacements in his chain of military command in case they are killed in Israeli strikes, he has also named three senior clerics to replace him should he, too, be slain.

Iranian opposition is divided and there is no guarantee new rulers would be any less hardline, analysts say.

With the war with Israel escalating, the successor for Ayatollah Ali Khamenei is already being discussed in some political circles