DUBAI, United Arab Emirates: Mojtaba Khamenei, a son of Iran’s late Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has long been considered a contender to the post of the country’s next paramount ruler — even before an Israeli strike killed his father at the start of the war last week and despite the fact he’s has never been elected or appointed to a government position. A secretive figure within the Islamic Republic, Mojtaba Khamenei has not been seen publicly since Saturday, when the Israeli airstrike targeting the supreme leader’s offices killed his 86-year-old father.

The selection of the late Ali Khamenei’s son, widely seen as a hardliner, signals defiance against both his father’s killing and calls for compromise

The 56-year-old Mojtaba Khamenei is set to continue leadership of Iran in the same vein as his father, according to reports