Iraqi political and faction leaders Ammar al-Hakim (left), Abu Alaa al-Walai (center), and Qais al-Khazali (right), who issued statements welcoming the appointment of Mojtaba Khamenei as Iran’s new supreme leader.
Iraq’s Shia factions congratulate Mojtaba Khamenei on appointment as Iran’s supreme leader
BAGHDAD — Several prominent Iraqi political and armed factions congratulated Mojtaba Khamenei on Monday following his appointment as Iran’s supreme leader, with militia leaders describing his selection as a continuation of the ideological path established by his father.
Abu Alaa al-Walai, secretary-general of Kataib Sayyid al-Shuhada, said “the line of guardianship remains extended, and its path will remain alive within the nation,” calling Mojtaba “the best successor to the best predecessor” and congratulating “all the free people of the world and the resistance movements” on the appointment.
Qais al-Khazali, secretary-general of Asaib Ahl al-Haq, described the appointment as “an extension of the authentic school established by the mujahid leaders and a continuation of the path of defending the causes of the nation and supporting the oppressed,” while recalling the late Ayatollah Ali Khamenei’s path as “a distinctive mark in the history of the Islamic Republic.”
Ammar al-Hakim, leader of the Hikma Movement, also issued a congratulatory message, saying he hoped the new leader would be granted success “in continuing the path of his martyred father and his honorable ancestors in upholding the word of truth.”
Kata’ib Hezbollah Secretary-General Abu Hussein al-Hamidawi had earlier become the first Iraqi militia leader to publicly welcome the appointment, describing Mojtaba as possessing “the leadership qualifications and competence” to manage “the burdens of this great trust in this difficult circumstance.”
The 88-member Assembly of Experts named Mojtaba Khamenei, 56, as the Islamic Republic’s third supreme leader on Sunday, following the death of his father in the U.S.-Israeli strikes that launched the regional war on Feb. 28. The transition marks the first hereditary succession in the history of the Islamic Republic. Mojtaba had for years maintained significant influence within Iran’s security apparatus and the IRGC before his appointment.