Iranian factions weaponize unseen supreme leader amid deepening power tussle

Two Iran International reports presented opposing accounts of President Masoud Pezeshkian's interactions with Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei, one suggesting a warning about resignation and the other describing a brief, unseen meeting in a tinted car. The president's office dismissed the resignation claim as false, while unnamed sources questioned the authenticity of the vehicle encounter. Scholars argue that Mojtaba Khamenei's public silence has left a leadership vacuum, prompting rival Islamist clans to invoke his name to justify their positions.

Kasra Aarabi of United Against Nuclear Iran likens the system to a godfather-run mafia, now destabilized by the leader's absence. Mehdi Ghadimi, an exiled journalist, adds that resignation rumors are a recurring tactic used by reformist administrations to garner sympathy. The ongoing infighting underscores how the supreme leader’s obscured presence fuels power contests rather than ideological debate.