Who is set to be in charge in Iran now that Khamenei is dead? A powerful hard-line military corps Mar 04, 2026 · Babak Dehghanpisheh · nbcnews.com read more » The U.S.-Israeli attack that ended Ayatollah Ali Khamenei’s iron-fisted rule of Iran also created a power vacuum in the Islamic Republic for the first time in decades, with a group of clerics convening to cast their votes on who would succeed him. Read more »