CNN:

Analysis by Leila Gharagozlou

Almost a week after his appointment as Iran’s supreme leader, Mojtaba Khamenei remains in the shadows.

Iranians got their first sense of his thinking on Thursday, when a lengthy statement attributed to him was read on state television. The following day was both his first Friday as leader and Al Quds Day – occasions when Iran’s supreme leader typically appears in public. But Mojtaba did not.

It’s now been six days since he was named their supreme leader, and the Iranian people have still not seen him or heard his voice.

A source with knowledge of the situation told CNN Mojtaba had suffered a fractured foot, a bruised left eye and minor lacerations to his face on the first day of the US and Israel’s bombardment campaign almost two weeks ago, the same wave of strikes that killed his father and Iran’s top military commanders.

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian’s son, a government adviser, wrote later that Mojtaba was injured but in a safe place and doing well based on reports from those in the know. US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said he is “likely disfigured” without providing any evidence, and Israel has previously indicated that any new supreme leader would be a target.

His absence has done little to dampen the fervor of those faithful to the regime, thousands of whom have taken to the streets to pledge their allegiance. The pledge has become a rallying cry as the regime seeks to consolidate support through mass demonstrations, particularly in the final days of the holy month of Ramadan.

Yet the continued absence of Iran’s new leader raises a deeper question: Who is truly running the country at a time of war?

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