Iran launched a series of missile attacks on Israel and several Gulf states early Monday after clerics appointed Mojtaba Khamenei as the country’s new supreme leader following the death of his father, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
The decision, announced on state television, came nine days after joint United States and Israeli strikes reportedly killed the elder Khamenei, an event that has escalated tensions across the Middle East and triggered a broader regional conflict.
Iran’s 88-member Assembly of Experts confirmed the appointment of the 56-year-old cleric, describing him as the third supreme leader since the 1979 Islamic Revolution.
A statement read on television said the assembly acted swiftly in choosing a successor despite what it described as “aggression” from the United States and Israel.
Shortly after the announcement, Iran reportedly launched missiles towards Israel while drones and projectiles were also directed at several Gulf states.
Saudi Arabia said it intercepted drones targeting an oil facility in its eastern region, while the United Arab Emirates and Kuwait reported missile incidents.
Authorities in Bahrain also confirmed that air raid sirens were activated.
Israel responded with fresh airstrikes, hitting infrastructure in central Iran as the conflict widened across multiple fronts.
The intensifying hostilities rattled global markets, with oil prices surging by about 30 per cent amid fears of disruptions to supply.
US President Donald Trump had earlier criticised Mojtaba Khamenei, calling him a “lightweight,” and suggested Washington should have influence over the selection of Iran’s new leader.
He warned that the new cleric might struggle to remain in power without international approval.
Israel’s defence minister had also warned that any successor to the late Iranian leader could become a military target.
Meanwhile, Iran’s powerful Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps pledged loyalty to Mojtaba Khamenei, promising full support for his leadership.
Global oil prices jumped past $100 per barrel for the first time since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine four years ago, as fears grew that attacks on energy infrastructure could disrupt supplies from the Gulf region.
Despite the spike, Trump described the rise in oil prices as a “small price to pay” if it meant neutralising what Washington considers a threat from Iran’s nuclear ambitions.
However, markets across Asia fell sharply as countries heavily dependent on imported energy reacted to the developments.
The United States also ordered non-essential diplomatic staff to leave Saudi Arabia after a drone attack struck the US embassy in the kingdom, signalling concerns that the conflict could escalate further.
In Lebanon, the fighting expanded after the Iran-backed Hezbollah group claimed it was confronting Israeli forces that entered eastern Lebanon by helicopter through the Syrian border. Lebanese media reported intense clashes near the town of Nabi Sheet.
Lebanon’s health ministry said Israeli strikes have killed at least 394 people since the conflict began, including dozens of women and children.
In a separate strike in central Beirut on Sunday, four people were killed and 10 injured when Israel targeted what it said was a meeting of commanders linked to Iran’s Qods Force.
Bahrain reported that 32 people were injured after an Iranian drone struck the island of Sitra overnight, including a teenage girl who suffered severe injuries and a two-month-old baby.
Saudi authorities also confirmed that a projectile attack in Al-Kharj province left two people dead and 12 others injured.
Iran’s health ministry, meanwhile, said the conflict has claimed at least 1,200 civilian lives in the country, with around 10,000 others wounded, although the figures could not be independently verified.
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