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Trump wants to personally participate in choosing Iran’s leader

Speaking about the process of choosing the new head of the Islamic Republic, the US president said the Iranian Assembly of Experts is "wasting their time"

WASHINGTON, March 5. /TASS/. US President Donald Trump says he should personally take part in selecting Iran’s next supreme leader.

Speaking with Axios about the process of choosing the new head of the Islamic Republic, the US president said the Iranian Assembly of Experts is "wasting their time." "I have to be involved in the appointment, like with [Authorized President] Delcy [Rodriguez] in Venezuela," Trump said. He described Mojtaba Khamenei, son of the late supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and considered by the media to be the most likely candidate, as a "lightweight."

"Khamenei's son is unacceptable to me. We want someone that will bring harmony and peace to Iran," the US president said.

On March 4, Mahmoud Rajabi, member of Iran’s Assembly of Experts, said the clerical body had started selecting the new supreme leader, and the final decision would be announced by the Secretariat.

The United States and Israel launched a large-scale military operation against Iran on February 28. Major Iranian cities, including Tehran, were struck. The White House justified the attack by citing alleged missile and nuclear threats from Iran. As a result of the strikes, Ali Khamenei, and several other senior figures in the leadership of the Islamic Republic were killed. The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps announced a retaliatory operation, targeting sites in Israel. US military bases in Bahrain, Jordan, Qatar, Kuwait, the UAE, and Saudi Arabia were also hit.

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