As the U.S.-Israeli war against Iran continues, Iranian state media confirmed on Monday, March 9, that Mojtaba Khamenei, the 56-year-old son of the assassinated Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, has been named Iran’s new supreme leader.
Mojtaba was expected to get the job and stepped into it while his country is experiencing the effects of war.
Meanwhile, U.S. Central Command confirmed that another American service member has died — the seventh since the conflict began nine days ago. The recent death was from wounds sustained during an Iranian attack on Saudi Arabia around a week ago. The strikes, to date, are taking place every single night as Israeli and American missiles and Iranian counterstrikes have been lighting up the skies.
But the latest targets have shifted toward Iran’s fuel depots, gas pipelines and oil installations in/around Tehran. After Israeli strikes hit several oil sites overnight, toxic smoke blanketed the capital. Iran declared that it was chemical warfare and that residents should stay indoors. The body count from that attack was four.
The Middle Eastern country announced that it will expand its target list to “key assets and vital interests” of both the U.S. and Israel throughout the region.
Video geolocated by CNN shows a large fire burning near a petrol storage facility in northeastern Tehran on Saturday. The Israeli military said it struck fuel storage sites in the city that evening. Follow live updates: https://t.co/dGpmK4mLor pic.twitter.com/yHspVnEEFR
— CNN (@CNN) March 8, 2026
U.S. Central Command is now warning civilians in Iran to avoid crowded areas, as they claim the country’s forces have been launching attack drones and ballistic missiles using civilian crowds as cover.
On the other hand, President Donald Trump suggested he should have a say in who leads Iran going forward. Iran’s foreign minister, however, shut it down in an NBC interview, saying, “We allow nobody to interfere in our domestic affairs. This is up to the Iranian people to elect their new leader.”
However, Israel has already threatened to kill the newly appointed Mojtaba.
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Globally speaking, China is panicking as its anti-Western fulcrum and its source of cheap oil is under threat. What’s worse is that Chinese people in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) are now facing Iranian drones that have been made partly with Chinese-sourced components.
Russia is giving “verbal support” and condolences, while hoping oil prices spike enough to refill its economy. Ukraine is watching the war unfold as Shahed drones have been killing Ukrainians for four years now.
But can the same air-defense interceptors be diverted to the Middle East?
Tehran’s Shahran oil depot is completely on fire tonight after an Israeli strike. pic.twitter.com/IEUw4MQNRC
— Republicans against Trump (@RpsAgainstTrump) March 7, 2026
Britain and the European Union (EU) are avoiding angering Washington while knowing that this war was a bad decision. The Atlantic Council calls it a regional conflict and warns that its consequences are spreading way beyond the Middle East.
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