Iran has chosen a new supreme leader amid the destruction of fuel dumps that engulfed most of Tehran and its surroundings in thick smoke on Sunday.
Though the successor to Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has been decided, the Assembly of Experts has yet to announce the name of the new supreme leader.
“The leader has been chosen through a vote,” Iran’s Mehr news agency quoted Ahmad Alamolhoda, a member of the cleric body, as saying.
He stated that the secretariat of the body would announce the name later. Other assembly members confirmed a decision was made, with one suggesting the son of the late leader would take the post.
Israel, meanwhile, issued a stark warning that its forces would not hesitate to target the new chief and members of the Assembly of Experts that met to confirm him.
Its reach was underlined by two new operations overnight – strikes against fuel dumps in and around Tehran, and an attack on a hotel in the heart of Lebanon’s capital, Beirut, that targeted suspected Iranian commanders.
As the war extended into its ninth day, Iran’s Revolutionary Guards said they had enough supplies to continue their aerial drone and missile war over the Middle East for up to six months.
Guards spokesman Ali Mohammad Naini said Iran had so far used only first- and second-generation missiles, but would use “advanced and less-used long-range missiles” in the coming days.
Saudi Arabia intercepted a wave of drones headed for targets including the diplomatic quarter in its capital, Riyadh. Kuwait said an attack hit fuel tanks at its international airport, and Bahrain reported a water desalination plant had been damaged.
Israeli planes hit five oil facilities in and around Tehran, killing four people. Following air strikes, fuel distribution had been interrupted in Tehran, blanketed by thick smoke and a smell of burning.
According to Israel, it had struck fuel storage facilities in the Iranian capital to prevent their usage by the military.
Iran has vowed to go after US assets in the region, and Saudi Arabia, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates and Kuwait all reported new attacks on Sunday.
