Iran’s Power Structure Shifts as Temporary Council Assumes Authority

A temporary council made up of the President, the Head of the Judiciary, and a cleric from the Guardian Council will step in to carry out the responsibilities of the Leader of the Islamic Republic for the time being.

According to IRNA, a three-member council - made up of the President, the Head of the Judiciary, and a cleric from the Guardian Council - will temporarily take over the responsibilities of the Leader of the Islamic Republic.

IRNA (Islamic Republic News Agency) is the official government news organ of Iran. This announcement follows Article 111 of the Iranian Constitution, which dictates that in the event of the death or incapacity of the Supreme Leader, a leadership council must manage the country until the Assembly of Experts (a body of clerics) elects a permanent successor. The inclusion of a “cleric from the Guardian Council” ensures the theological oversight central to the regime’s “Velayat-e Faqih” (Guardianship of the Jurist) system.

This announcement comes amid earlier unconfirmed reports claiming that Masoud Pezeshkian and Gholam-Hossein Mohseni-Eje’i - the heads of the Executive and Judicial branches of the Islamic Republic, respectively - had also died.

As of the time of this report, no images or audio recordings of these two officials have been released, except for a statement from the government and a tweet on Mohseni-Eje’i’s X (formerly Twitter) account.

In the closing hours of Saturday, February 28, internal sources in Iran reported that Mohammad Reza Aref, the First Vice President under Masoud Pezeshkian, has taken over the administration of the country under wartime conditions - a move that has raised questions about Pezeshkian’s health and ability to carry out his duties.