Trump reportedly given US intel showing Ali Khamenei viewed his son as ‘not very bright, unqualified to be leader’

United States intelligence shared with US President Donald Trump showed that Iran’s late supreme leader, Ali Khamenei, was wary about his recently elected son, Mojtaba Khamenei, replacing him as ruler, sources familiar with the matter tell CBS.

The elder Khameini’s fears stemmed from the perception that Mojtaba was “not very bright, and was viewed as unqualified to be leader,” and from an awareness that Mojtaba had “issues in his personal life,” according to the sources, which are said to include people within the Trump administration, the US intelligence community, and figures close to the president.

In a possible reference to the intelligence he was allegedly briefed on, Trump told Fox News in a Friday interview that Mojtaba “is not somebody that the father even wanted.”

Trump has conveyed to confidants that he feels Iran is “essentially leaderless right now, with the younger Khamenei possibly dead,” and the White House believes Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps holds primary authority in the country, according to the CBS report.