When Mojtaba Khamenei was named Iran’s Supreme Leader on March 8, 2026, the world watched with a mix of surprise and skepticism. The succession, which unfolded against the backdrop of an all-out war with the United States and Israel, was anything but smooth. What appeared on the surface to be an orderly transfer of religious and political power was, in reality, a high-stakes drama marked by intrigue, family rivalry, and now—according to U.S. intelligence—explosive personal revelations that have sent shockwaves through both Tehran and Washington.
This latest chapter in Iran’s leadership saga began in the chaos that followed the death of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who had reigned since 1989. The process, described by multiple senior Iranian officials as the Islamic Republic’s own “Game of Thrones,” saw competing dynasties, political heavyweights, and military commanders all vying for control. According to The New York Times, Ayatollah Khamenei had provided his advisers with three potential successors, but his son Mojtaba was not among them. Still, as bombs rained down and the theocracy’s survival hung in the balance, Mojtaba—long considered a reclusive and enigmatic figure—emerged as the unexpected choice.
But the drama didn’t end with his appointment. U.S. intelligence agencies, in a briefing to President Donald Trump on March 16, 2026, dropped a bombshell: Mojtaba Khamenei is probably gay. The claim, which sources say is based on highly credible and protected intelligence, was met with disbelief and even laughter in the Oval Office. According to The New York Post, Trump “couldn’t contain his surprise and laughed aloud when he was briefed on the intel,” with other aides joining in. One senior intelligence official reportedly “has not stopped laughing about it for days.”
The allegations, while shocking, were not dismissed as mere rumor or disinformation. Three sources—including two from the intelligence community and one close to the White House—insisted the tip was solid. “The fact that this was elevated to the highest of high levels shows you there’s some confidence in this,” one source told The New York Post. The intelligence apparently points to a long-term sexual relationship between Mojtaba and his childhood tutor, or possibly a former family employee. While no photographic evidence exists, the detail and provenance of the information have convinced U.S. agencies of its credibility.
The implications are profound, given Iran’s draconian laws against homosexuality. In the Islamic Republic, sodomy is a capital offense, and gay men have been executed in public as a warning to others. As The New York Post reminds readers, former President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad once infamously claimed, “In Iran, we don’t have homosexuals.” Yet, whispers about Mojtaba’s orientation have circulated inside Iran since at least the helicopter crash in May 2024 that killed then-President Ebrahim Raisi, the presumed heir to Ali Khamenei. The U.S. State Department’s own files note that Mojtaba married “relatively late in life”—around age 30—after undergoing treatment for an impotency problem in London hospitals. A fourth visit reportedly led to his wife’s pregnancy.
Mojtaba’s personal life has been the subject of scrutiny not just in Washington, but also in Tehran. According to CBS News, his father considered him “not very bright” and “unqualified to be leader,” citing both professional and personal struggles. Ali Khamenei’s doubts were so pronounced that he excluded his son from his list of preferred successors. But the war, and the sudden death of more favored candidates, upended those plans.
Adding to the intrigue, Mojtaba’s wife Zahra and their teenage son Mohammad Bagher were reportedly killed in the same airstrike that claimed Ali Khamenei’s life. The new supreme leader is said to have another son and a daughter, but his current whereabouts remain murky. Since his appointment, Mojtaba has not been seen in public—a fact that has fueled speculation about his health and grip on power.
The mystery deepened when Iranian state television aired his first address as supreme leader not in person, but through a newscaster reading a written statement against a photograph. In it, Mojtaba vowed to keep the Strait of Hormuz shut and warned neighboring countries to close U.S. bases or face Iranian retaliation. Behind the scenes, however, conflicting reports about his condition began to surface. On March 8, Iranian state media acknowledged that he had been wounded in the ongoing conflict but provided no further details. U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth later told the press that Mojtaba was “wounded and likely disfigured.”
According to a senior source cited by the Kuwaiti newspaper Al Jarida, Mojtaba was secretly evacuated to Moscow for medical treatment after being injured on February 28, the first day of U.S.-Israeli military strikes against Iran. Russian President Vladimir Putin reportedly proposed the evacuation during a phone call with Iran’s new president, Masoud Pezeshkian. Upon arrival in Moscow, Mojtaba underwent surgery at a secure facility within one of Putin’s presidential residences. The Kremlin confirmed the two leaders spoke on March 10. As of March 12, Iranian officials maintained that Mojtaba was stable but still recovering.
The opacity surrounding his health and absence from public life has led to rampant speculation about who is really running Iran. According to CBS News, the White House now believes the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) is effectively pulling the strings. President Trump, for his part, has publicly questioned whether Mojtaba is even alive, telling Fox News on March 14 that Iran’s “leadership is gone. Their second leadership is gone. Now their third leadership is in trouble, and this is not somebody that the father even wanted.” In a separate interview, Trump described Mojtaba as “damaged” and “probably alive in some form.”
For ordinary Iranians, these revelations are both surreal and dangerous. Homosexuality remains a taboo subject, and the fate of a leader accused of violating one of the regime’s most violently enforced laws is uncertain at best. As one U.S. source told The New York Post, “If there was ever a time where it was OK to out somebody, it would be when it’s a leader of a repressive Islamic theocracy that hangs gay people by cranes.”
Meanwhile, the power struggle in Tehran continues, with clerics, military leaders, and security chiefs all maneuvering for influence. Mojtaba’s ascension, once seen as the consolidation of a family dynasty, now looks more like a temporary truce in a much larger and ongoing battle for Iran’s future.
As the dust settles over Tehran and Moscow, the world waits to see if Mojtaba Khamenei will emerge to lead—or if the real power in Iran now lies elsewhere, hidden behind the smoke of war and scandal.