Iran has elected Mojtaba Khamenei as its new leader, more than a week after his father was killed in an airstrike.
The 56-year-old was chosen to become the next supreme leader on Sunday evening, despite Donald Trump’s insistence that he should have a say in the appointment.
“By a decisive vote, the Assembly of Experts appointed Ayatollah Seyyed Mojtaba Hosseini Khamenei as the third Leader of the sacred system of the Islamic Republic of Iran,” the assembly said.
Khamenei will step into the role having never held a position in Iran’s government. He represents a continuation of his father’s hardline policies, having opposed reformers and dialogue with the West.
The decision was announced shortly after the US confirmed that a seventh military service member has died from wounds sustained during Iran’s initial counterattack a week ago. They have not been named.
“Last night, a U.S. service member passed away from injuries received during the Iranian regime’s initial attacks across the Middle East. The service member was seriously wounded at the scene of an attack on U.S. troops in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia on March 1,” U.S. Central Command said in a statement.
Bahrain says dozens injured in drone attack
Bahrain this morning said at least 32 citizens have sustained injuries in an alleged Iranian drone attack on the island of Sitra.
The health ministry of Bahrain said all the wounded were Bahraini citizens and there were four “serious cases”, including children.
The wounded included a 17-year-old girl who suffered severe head and eye injuries and a two-month-old baby, according to the ministry.
Crude oil prices surpass $100 a barrel
Oil prices eclipsed $114 per barrel for the first time since 2022 this morning as the Iran war intensified, threatening production and shipping in the Middle East.
The price for a barrel of Brent crude, the international standard, surged past $114 after trading resumed on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange. That was up 23 per cent from its Friday closing price of $92.69.
West Texas Intermediate, the light, sweet crude oil produced in the United States, also was selling for about $114 a barrel. That’s 25 per cent higher than its close Friday at $90.90.
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South Korea to impose fuel price cap
South Korean president Lee Jae Myung said this morning that authorities would cap domestic fuel prices for the first time in nearly 30 years to contain a spike after the conflict in the Middle East sent global crude prices sharply higher.
Speaking at an emergency meeting on the impact of the Middle East crisis, Mr Lee said the government would “swiftly introduce and boldly implement” a maximum price system on petroleum products that have recently seen excessive price increases.
The current crisis “is a significant burden on our economy, which is highly dependent on global trade and energy imports from the Middle East,” he said in opening remarks.
He added that South Korea will also look for energy sources beyond supplies shipped via the Strait of Hormuz.
Mr Lee said a 100 trillion won ($66.94bn) market stabilisation programme could be expanded if needed, and called on the government and the central bank to prepare additional measures to respond to volatility in financial and foreign exchange markets.
EXCL: Emirates pledges to resume all flights despite Dubai airport attack
The biggest airline in the Gulf, Emirates, is resuming flights at scale – despite its hub at Dubai airport being the target of an Iranian attack.
Following fresh drone strikes in the UAE city, flights were briefly suspended on Saturday and passengers were taken into tunnels at the airport, which is normally the busiest global hub in the world.
But Emirates said it would continue to ramp up its operations to and from its hub at Dubai.
Iran war ‘could bring down global economy’ after warning oil could reach $150 a barrel
The Gulf state’s energy minister, Saad al-Kaabi, said it would take his country “weeks to months” to return to its normal delivery pattern after an Iranian drone strike at its largest liquefied natural gas (LNG) plant – with Europe likely to suffer a price spike as a result.
His prediction came as Goldman Sachs bank warned the price of oil could jump to as much as $150 per barrel by the end of March, hitting British consumers and businesses hard.
Who is Iran’s new supreme leader Mojtaba Khamenei?
Here’s who he is and why it matters:
British couple held in Tehran prison caught in US-Iran war crossfire as bombs shatter windows
The British couple jailed in Tehran told how bombs exploding next to their prison shattered windows and caused plaster to rain down from the ceiling.
Lindsay and Craig Foreman, from East Sussex, were sentenced last month to 10 years in prison on disputed espionage charges after being arrested while travelling through Iran on a global motorcycle tour in January 2025.
Now living through the Israeli-US bombardment of Iran, they recounted how last Saturday afternoon a bomb exploded so close to Evin Prison that the blast blew out the windows.
Recap: Blair sparks row with Starmer after claiming UK ‘should have backed Trump from the beginning’ in Iran
Sir Tony Blair criticised Sir Keir Starmer’s slow support for Donald Trump’s war on Iran, reportedly telling an event: “We should have backed America from the very beginning”.
The former prime minister told a private Jewish News event on Friday that Sir Keir should have let the Trump administration use British airbases to strike Iran.
He reportedly added: “If they are your ally and they are an indispensable cornerstone for your security … you had better show up”.
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US orders staff out of Saudi Arabia over safety risks
The US has ordered non-essential US diplomats and government employee family members to leave Saudi Arabia due to safety risks.
The United States began to pull out non-essential staff from Gulf Arab countries last Monday, three days into the war.
The US embassy in Riyadh on Tuesday approved voluntary departures, four days into the war and on the same day that it was struck by Iranian drones that led to a fire that damaged the mission’s facilities.
Source: independent.co.uk