Iran's Secretive Succession: 88 Clerics Pick New Supreme Leader Amid Power Vacuum

• Iran faces a power vacuum after Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was killed on February 28 in US-Israeli strikes.
• A new supreme leader is expected within days, with the Assembly of Experts, an 88-cleric body, tasked with the selection.
• The supreme leader holds ultimate religious and political authority, serving as commander-in-chief and having final say on policy.
• An Interim Leadership Council, including President Masoud Pezeshkian and Chief Justice Gholam-Hossein Mohseni-Eje’i, is temporarily managing duties.
• The selection process lacks transparency; candidates for the Assembly of Experts are vetted by the Guardian Council, whose members are appointed by the supreme leader, creating a circular system.