News blog about the war in the Middle East
Succession in Iran: “The name Khamenei will be retained”
Updated March 8, 2026 – 8:28 p.mReading time: 21 minutes
In Iran they have probably agreed on a successor. Evidence points to the son of the former Ayatollah. All developments in the news blog.
A member of Iran’s panel of experts says they have chosen a candidate to become the Islamic Republic’s new spiritual leader. The name “Khamenei” will remain the same, says Hosseinali Eshkevari, without naming the candidate exactly. Observers had previously said the most likely candidate was Modshtaba Khamenei. He is the son of the previous spiritual leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who was killed about a week ago in attacks by the USA and Israel on Iran.
The fighting between Israel and Hezbollah triggered a massive refugee movement in Lebanon within a week. According to the Lebanese government, more than 517,000 people have already had to leave their homes. However, the actual number is likely to be higher because the statistics only include those who have registered via a government online portal.
In recent days, Israel has called on residents of dozens of villages in southern Lebanon and all of Beirut’s southern suburbs to evacuate.
Dutch Prime Minister Rob Jetten has described the US and Israeli attacks on Iran as incompatible with international law. At the same time, however, he emphasized that Iran continues to pose a threat to security in the region.
“Both the attacks on Iran last week and Iran’s unacceptable retaliatory measures against countries in the region are outside the framework of international law,” Jetten said at his weekly press conference in The Hague.
With these statements, the Dutch head of government appears to be moving closer to the position of other European states such as Spain and France, which have also expressed doubts about the legality of the war.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi has called on US President Donald Trump to apologize for starting the current war against Iran. In the US broadcaster NBC’s “Meet the Press” program, Araghchi said that it was not Iran but the USA that had to take responsibility for the destruction and victims in the region.
