Little is known about Iran’s new supreme leader Mojtaba Khamenei, but he’s likely to continue his father’s “hardline, hostile attitude” toward the US, Israel and the West more generally, one expert says.

Andrew England, the Financial Times’ Middle East editor, told Newstalk ZB’s Ryan Bridge that hostility would be compounded because Khamenei's father, mother, wife and sister have all been killed.

Khamenei has not given any statement since the war began, England said.

“We don't know where he is and we don't really know what the fate of him is. We don't know if he was in that compound, you know, if he's wounded, if he's fit and healthy.”

US President Donald Trump had called Khamenei a “lightweight” and warned any new Iranian leader wouldn’t last long without his approval, while the Israelis had suggested they would assassinate a new leader.

The choice of Khamenei was a sign of defiance from Iran, suggesting the regime would continue to fight, so he was likely to be a prime target, England said.

It was unclear how big Iran’s arsenal was nor how badly they had been damaged, England said. But “from the Islamic regime's perspective, endurance is a victory, survival is a victory. And as long as they can continue firing a missile here, a drone there, and survive this onslaught from the world's most powerful army, to them that will be victory.”

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