A senior Iranian official has offered a rare inside account of the Assembly of Experts session that elected Ayatollah Seyyed Mojtaba Hossein Khamenei as Iran's new Supreme Leader, dismissing Western and domestic allegations of a political coup and asserting that the process followed constitutional procedures with full democratic legitimacy.
In an interview with Al-Mayadeen television, Mohsen Rezaei — a member of Iran's Expediency Council and former commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) during the Iran-Iraq War — described in detail how the nine-day succession process unfolded, according to a report published by Iran's Etemad newspaper, citing the state-affiliated ISNA news agency.
No Coup, Says Rezaei
Rezaei was emphatic that the selection of the new Supreme Leader was an institutional act, not the product of any faction or individual. "The right to choose the leader in Iran does not belong to any individual, party, or group — it belongs to the Assembly of Experts, elected by the people," he said, per Etemad. He disclosed that six candidates were in contention and that the majority of Assembly members voted in favour of Ayatollah Seyyed Mojtaba Hossein Khamenei. The process lasted nine days, and Rezaei insisted that no coup took place. He attributed the country's stability during the interregnum to the existence of a Leadership Council that manages state affairs when the supreme leadership post is vacant.
The account comes amid contested international narratives surrounding the succession. Western governments and some internal critics had questioned the legitimacy of the process, with reports of IRGC pressure on Assembly members and disputes over the late Supreme Leader's written will — which reportedly expressed his wish that family members not succeed him.
War, Diplomacy and the Strait of Hormuz
Rezaei also addressed the broader context of the ongoing conflict with the United States and Israel, framing Iran's posture as one of strategic resilience. He argued that Washington had entered the region expecting a quick victory followed by withdrawal, but said that path had been "blocked." According to Etemad, he stated that the U.S. was now isolated internationally, with even its traditional allies offering limited support.
On the Strait of Hormuz — a critical global shipping lane — Rezaei asserted that, unlike other straits, it is bounded on three sides by Iranian territory and one side by Oman, making it effectively an Iranian waterway. He accused Iran's enemies of weaponising the strait against Tehran during the so-called Twelve-Day War, and said Iran's primary goals there are security and commerce. He suggested Iran was entitled to financial compensation for guaranteeing the strait's safety, saying: "We must recoup this cost from the Strait of Hormuz."
Rezaei revealed that during the Twelve-Day War, U.S. President Donald Trump contacted Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi to request a ceasefire, which Iran accepted. He said Iran agreed to conduct simultaneous diplomacy and warfare, despite what he described as repeated breaches of commitments by Washington. However, he drew a firm line on the nuclear question: Iran would not discuss its nuclear programme in the Islamabad negotiations, adhering to what he described as ten non-negotiable points.
A Regional Vision
More broadly, Rezaei outlined an Iranian vision for the Middle East in which regional states — including Saudi Arabia and Turkey — pursue self-sufficiency and expel all foreign military forces, both American and European. He called for the establishment of a regional security council. On the domestic front, Rezaei cited a campaign titled "My Life for Iran," which he said had registered approximately 32 million participants — including some drawn from the 2025–2026 protest movement — as evidence of public willingness to resist external aggression.
The interview, reported by Etemad and originally broadcast on Al-Mayadeen, represents one of the most detailed official Iranian accounts of both the leadership transition and the country's current strategic calculus since the death of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.