Iran Names New Supreme Leader, Strikes Civilian Infrastructure in Bahrain

After days of consideration, Iran has named their new Supreme Leader to be Mojtaba Khamenei, the son of former leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

The selection of Mojtaba Khamenei, 56, represents Iran's ongoing refusal to comply with the demands of the United States and Israel, who asserted that they would play a role in finding the next leader of Iran.

Khamenei has been a prominent figure in the Iranian government for years, serving as a religious leader alongside his father while building up ties with organizations like the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps– a major branch of the Iranian Army. Furthermore, Khamenei has worked to diversify his backing by investing in other industries like real estate, banking, and shipping, but kept his profile low-key.

He rarely speaks or appears in public and is barely known by much of the country, directing operations from behind the scenes. This, though, has led to allegations against his secretive influence over the Iranian government, helping promote the elder Khamenei's hardline, often violent stances and goals without making his moves public.

In total, experts have confirmed that Mojtaba Khamenei is the closest leader Iran could have selected to maintain the status quo, as he maintains almost all of the same ideals to his father. However, whether the US and Israel will target him next is yet to be determined.

The civilians of Bahrain are beginning to suffer the consequences of the ongoing war after several Iranian strikes on major infrastructure.

While the ongoing war had been largely limited to strikes on US-affiliated bases and equipment, Iran has expanded their attacks on Bahrain to include civilian infrastructure, and stray drones and missiles have struck other locations as well.

Last week, an Iranian drone hit one of Bahrain's numerous desalination plants, doing minimal damage. However, it represents an escalation in hostility to include crucial infrastructure– the Middle East is heavily dependent on desalination to provide their water, as it remains impossible to find fresh water in the extensive expanse of the Arabian Desert.

Iran claimed that the US had hit a desalination plant on Qeshm Island, off the coast of southern Iran, sparking retaliation strikes on Bahrain. However, Iran has also claimed that they have only targeted US military operations and bases, which has not been true– they have struck targets in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia, and debris from stray drones and missiles have sparked fires and caused damage across other nations like Qatar and the UAE.

Then, yesterday, Iran hit an oil refinery on the island of Sitra, located near the capital of Manama. The attack sparked a fire following an initial explosion, sending smoke billowing into the air, and injured at least 32 local citizens, drawing the ire of the Bahraini government.

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Quote of the Day (Gracious Quotes): A great man is always willing to be little.

(Ralph Waldo Emerson)

Word of the Day (Merriam-Webster): Hector (verb, HEK-ter) - To hector someone is to criticize or question them in a threatening way.

In a Sentence: The judge ordered the attorney to stop hectoring the witness.

Image credit to Reuters