Iranian clerics convene to choose Ayatollah successor

NPR | By Jackie Northam

Published March 5, 2026 at 2:49 AM MST

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As clerics convene to replace Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei after his death in an Israeli strike, Iran faces a pivotal choice that could either cement hardline continuity under his son or usher in a fundamentally transformed regime.

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Jackie Northam

Jackie Northam is NPR's International Affairs Correspondent. She is a veteran journalist who has spent three decades reporting on conflict, geopolitics, and life across the globe - from the mountains of Afghanistan and the desert sands of Saudi Arabia, to the gritty prison camp at Guantanamo Bay and the pristine beauty of the Arctic.