Andrew England: Financial Times Middle East Editor explains who Mojtaba Khamenei is

Little is known about Iran’s new supreme leader Mojtaba Khamenei, but he’s likely to continue his father’s “hardline, hostile attitude” toward the US, Israel and the West more generally, one expert says.

Andrew England, the Financial Times’ Middle East editor, told Newstalk ZB’s Ryan Bridge that hostility would be compounded because Khamenei's father, mother, wife and sister have all been killed.

Khamenei has not given any statement since the war began, England said.

“We don't know where he is and we don't really know what the fate of him is. We don't know if he was in that compound, you know, if he's wounded, if he's fit and healthy.”

US President Donald Trump had called Khamenei a “lightweight” and warned any new Iranian leader wouldn’t last long without his approval, while the Israelis had suggested they would assassinate a new leader.

The choice of Khamenei was a sign of defiance from Iran, suggesting the regime would continue to fight, so he was likely to be a prime target, England said.

It was unclear how big Iran’s arsenal was nor how badly they had been damaged, England said. But “from the Islamic regime's perspective, endurance is a victory, survival is a victory. And as long as they can continue firing a missile here, a drone there, and survive this onslaught from the world's most powerful army, to them that will be victory.”

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Around appointed much Tobat Harmony, the son of the late
Supreme Leader who was killed in UIs Israeli strikes. As
the new Supreme Leader, fifty six years old, kept a
very low profile. Andrew England, as the Financial Times Middle
East editor joins US Live this morning, Andrew, this doesn't
sound much like a big change or regime change. Is

(00:21):
what's this guy going to be?

Speaker 2 (00:23):
Like?

Speaker 1 (00:23):
Do we know?

Speaker 3 (00:25):
No, I mean, we know very little about him. But
what we do know is he's probably going to be
a continuation of his father, who is in power for
nearly four decades. That means a hardline, hostile attitude towards
the US, towards Israel, towards the West more generally. And
let's remember that, you know, last week the Americans and

(00:45):
israelis bomb Supreme Leader his father's compound killed mushta Bar's father,
his mother, his wife, his sister. So you know, he's
probably got a lot of hostility in him. So what
we've seen is one how many replaced another Hamony just
this is a younger version, potentially a more hawkish version.
We just don't know yet because we don't know enough

(01:07):
about him. Like you said, he's kind of kept a
very low profile over the years.

Speaker 1 (01:13):
There's talk that people haven't even heard his voice. We
don't even know what he sounds like. He's a low profile.

Speaker 3 (01:19):
Yeah, there's one recording of his voice, and they the
Iranian media has put out footage of him back in
the eighties during the Irana Rock War when he's with
what looks like members of the elite Revolutionary Guards and
he's close to Revenuetion Guards.

Speaker 2 (01:35):
But you know, he's had no formal position.

Speaker 3 (01:38):
We know that he was close to his father, the
Supreme lead to Ali I told Ali Haromeni, and sort
of worked in his office, but he had no formal position.
He hasn't spoken, he hasn't hasn't given a statement. We
haven't heard from him since the war started. We don't

(01:59):
know where he is and we don't really know what
the fate of it is. We don't know if he
was in that compound, you know, if he's wounded, if
he's fit and healthy.

Speaker 2 (02:07):
We just really don't know.

Speaker 1 (02:08):
He's obviously got a target on his back. Now, I
doesn't thin because the Israelies as say they want to
get rid of them in.

Speaker 2 (02:14):
The absolutely now no, I mean, you know, possibly the Americans.

Speaker 3 (02:19):
I mean, Trump was asked about Mochedaba the other day
and he called him a lightweight. He said that he
wants to approve the appointment of a new leader. He's
said he's worn that, you know, a new leader without
his approval won't last long. These Raelis have suggested that
they would assassinate a new leader. Trump said he's that

(02:42):
the American and Israeli strikes have killed forty nine leaders.
So certainly given that he's, you know, an extension of
his father, an extension of the regime, and it's a
sign that the regime is doubling down.

Speaker 2 (02:55):
It's showing that it's defined.

Speaker 3 (02:56):
It's kind of stuck its finger up to Trump and
showing that, you know, everyone's reading this, this is going
to continue to resist and fight back in this For
then obviously he's going to be reassume that he's going
to be a prime target.

Speaker 1 (03:10):
Yeah, they're also saying they can do six months of
this dance at this pace of bombing. Is that bluster
or are they serious?

Speaker 2 (03:17):
Six months?

Speaker 1 (03:17):
The Americans or the Iranians, Sorry.

Speaker 2 (03:22):
We don't know.

Speaker 3 (03:22):
I mean, look, obviously they're taking an absolute pounding that's
been intense bombing. They've got blistic missiles which require missile launches,
and you can have as many missiles as you like,
but if you don't have the launches, then the missiles
are no good. And we can assume, and these readies
have been saying this that a lot of their.

Speaker 2 (03:40):
Launches have been hit.

Speaker 3 (03:40):
They also have drones which they've been firing across the gulf,
and this is what's pushed up with all prices.

Speaker 2 (03:47):
They have a lot of drones.

Speaker 3 (03:48):
You don't need launches to do those. So, you know,
we don't know how long they can stain it because
we don't know the full degree of their arsenals. We
don't know the full degree of damage. But you've got
to remember, from the Islamic Gene's perspective, endurance is a victory.

Speaker 2 (04:02):
Survival is victory.

Speaker 3 (04:04):
And as long as they can continue firing and missile
here and a drone there and survive this onslought from
you know the world's most powerful army to them, that
will be victory.

Speaker 2 (04:15):
So in some ways it's kind of a war of endurance.

Speaker 1 (04:19):
Andrew, appreciate your analysis this morning, Andrew England, Financial Times
Middle East Editor.

Speaker 2 (04:23):
It is for more from early edition with Ryan Bridge.

Speaker 3 (04:27):
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