How the absence of Iran's new supreme leader is becoming a liability for Tehran

Dubai - The ⁠whereabouts of Mojtaba Khamenei have been a mystery to Iranians and the rest of the world alike since his appointment as supreme leader a week after the strike that killed his father at the end of February.

His absence from the main funeral ceremonies for former leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was so complete there was not even a written message, leaving people to guess at his plans for Iran at a turbulent time in the Islamic Republic's 47-year history.

Installed with the backing of the powerful Revolutionary Guard, he suffered facial disfigurement and other injuries in the strike, ​senior sources say. They say he has been making decisions but has not yet been well enough to appear in public. Now, after hostilities with the U.S. reignited ‌this week, ‌his role and health are of critical — and growing — concern.

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