From the Liveblog of
Monday, March 9, 2026
‘Apple doesn’t fall far from the tree’: Israel says Mojtaba Khamenei’s hands ‘already stained with blood’
Add ToI as a Preferred Source on GoogleLazar Berman is The Times of Israel's diplomatic reporter
After Mojtaba Khamenei is selected as Iran’s third Supreme Leader, the Foreign Ministry writes on X, “The apple doesn’t fall far from the tree.”
“Mojtaba Khamenei’s hands are already stained with the bloodshed that defined his father’s rule. Another tyrant to continue the Iranian regime’s brutality.”
Israel killed Khamenei’s father, who had been supreme leader since 1989, on the first day of the US-Israeli campaign against Iran. Israel has said that it would target whoever succeeded the elder Khamenei.
The apple doesn’t fall far from the tree.
Mojtaba Khamenei’s hands are already stained with the bloodshed that defined his father’s rule.
Another tyrant to continue the Iranian regime’s brutality. pic.twitter.com/VW54UWpIdp— Israel Foreign Ministry (@IsraelMFA) March 9, 2026
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