Power shift under bombs - Mojtaba Khamenei takes over in a country at war!
Nine days after the start of the American Israeli attacks, Iran stands at a radical turning point. Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has been killed in an airstrike. In the early morning hours, leading Shiite clerics announced his successor: Mojtaba Khamenei, 56 years old, son of the deceased. The decision was made in the midst of an open war, while rockets strike and threats from Washington and Tel Aviv grow louder. Mojtaba Khamenei has for years been considered closely connected to the Revolutionary Guards. With his appointment, he assumes not only religious authority but also supreme command of the armed forces. It is a signal of continuity in a phase of maximum uncertainty. The leadership is betting on internal stability while pressure from outside increases.
Crowds gather across Iran after Mojtaba Khamenei was announced as the country’s new Supreme Leader. Supporters celebrate the appointment of the 56 year old son of the late Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
Israel had already announced that it would also target a successor. Donald Trump called Mojtaba Khamenei an unacceptable choice and stated in an interview that the next revolutionary leader would not remain in office long without American approval. It is a direct threat to the sovereignty of a country under sustained military fire. There is no end to the fighting in sight. The US State Department instructed American diplomats to leave Saudi Arabia. Concern over a regional expansion is rising. At the same time, markets react. Oil prices jumped by more than ten percent at the start of the week and crossed the 100 dollar per barrel mark for the first time in almost four years. Trump described it as a short term effect and a small price for security and peace. Iran gets a new revolutionary leader while the war continues. The decision came quickly. The consequences could last.
Drone attack on residential area in Bahrain - 32 civilians injured, children among the victims
An Iranian drone struck a residential area in Bahrain and injured 32 civilians. Among them are toddlers, the youngest two years old. The attack hit the island of Sitra, not far from key energy facilities. Authorities describe it as a targeted strike in a sensitive environment where homes and infrastructure lie close together. Four people are in critical condition. Two boys aged seven and eight suffered severe leg injuries and had to undergo surgery. Doctors are fighting for stability while the region remains tense. The attack shows how closely military escalation and civilian daily life now stand side by side.
Bahrain is strategically important, also because of its location in the Gulf and its proximity to energy facilities. When drones strike residential neighborhoods there, it is more than a military signal. It intensifies the situation in a region where the fronts can no longer be limited to individual states.
Saudi Arabia warns Tehran - the greatest loser in further escalation
Saudi Arabia is sharpening its tone toward Iran and issuing a clear warning: Tehran will be the greatest loser if attacks on Arab states continue. The trigger was a new drone strike that apparently targeted the massive Shaybah oil field in the south of the kingdom. The facility is considered strategically significant for energy supply and for the stability of global markets.
Riyadh at the same time contradicted statements by Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, who had declared that Iran had halted its attacks on the Gulf states. The Foreign Ministry clarified that this announcement was implemented neither during the speech nor afterward. Instead, Iran continues its aggression and invokes pretexts without actual basis. The Saudi statement speaks of a further escalation with serious consequences for bilateral relations - now and in the future. Pressure is thus increasing in a region where energy infrastructure is increasingly becoming a direct target of military operations.
Qatar arrests more than 300 people - allegation of misleading information
Qatar has arrested more than 300 individuals of various nationalities according to its own statements. The allegation is that they incited public unrest amid the war in the Middle East. The Interior Ministry stated that those concerned were taken into custody for filming, spreading, and publishing misleading information.
The government did not provide concrete details about individual cases. It remains unclear which content was classified as misleading and on which platforms it was allegedly disseminated. The measure comes at a time of growing regional tensions in which governments are reacting with increasing sensitivity to digital communication. With the arrests, Qatar sends a clear signal domestically: control over information is understood as part of the security strategy. While military confrontations shake the region, the handling of public space and digital reporting is also shifting.
Trump calls Iran’s new revolutionary leader a lightweight - and claims a say
The White House did not initially respond officially to the appointment of Mojtaba Khamenei as Iran’s new Supreme Leader. Donald Trump, however, had already made his position clear. He described the 56 year old, who has never held an elected or formal government office, as a lightweight. In an interview, Trump said he wanted to see someone who would bring harmony and peace to Iran. At the same time, he made clear that he wanted to be involved in the selection. He stated verbatim that he had to be involved in the appointment - as with Delcy Rodríguez in Venezuela. Rodríguez took power in January after Nicolás Maduro was arrested in the course of a US military operation and brought to the United States, where he faces federal charges for drug conspiracy.
Earlier, Trump had emphasized that a new Iranian leader would not remain in office long if he did not have his approval. In doing so, an American president openly claims influence over the appointment of the highest religious and political office of a sovereign state.
Greens ahead, CDU close behind - Baden Württemberg faces difficult coalition building
The Greens win the state election in Baden Württemberg with 30.2 percent just ahead of the CDU, which comes in at 29.7 percent. Cem Özdemir thus stands at the top and claims the mandate to form a government. Should a coalition succeed, he would be the first minister president of the state with a migration background. The CDU must settle for second place despite significant gains.
The AfD troublingly doubles its result to 18.8 percent and achieves its best outcome in a state election in the southwest. Here it becomes clear that education alongside politics requires new impulses. The SPD crashes to 5.5 percent and barely secures its place in parliament. Lead candidate Andreas Stoch announces his resignation. The FDP and the Left each fail with 4.4 percent to clear the five percent threshold, and FDP state leader Hans Ulrich Rülke also draws consequences. Now the talks begin. Among the Greens, a negotiating group is forming around Özdemir, the CDU is consulting in Stuttgart and Berlin. Officially, the federal party points to tailwind from the national level. Yet the question of why the lead was ultimately lost is likely to resonate internally for a long time.
US madness continues: Six dead in the Pacific - US military continues attacks on small boats
The US military has again attacked a boat in the eastern Pacific. Six people on board were killed. Details about the identity and exact function of the vessel were not initially disclosed. The operation is part of a series of missions against small watercraft that Washington classifies as part of an expanded security course. Since early September, according to official figures, 157 people have been killed in such operations. The government describes the targets as narcoterrorists and justifies the attacks as combating cross border drug structures. Critics, however, raise questions about transparency, evidence, and the legal basis of these operations on the high seas.
With each additional mission, the number of dead rises. At the same time, the debate grows over how far military means may be used in the fight against organized crime. The Pacific is thus no longer merely a transit route, but has become the scene of a concealed conflict.
Republican senator attacks Stephen Miller - a big problem in this administration
Republican Senator Thom Tillis calls on President Donald Trump to dismiss Stephen Miller. Miller is a big problem in this administration and has been from the beginning, Tillis said, thus openly opposing one of the central figures of migration policy. At the same time, the senator acknowledged that his party has lost the public debate over immigration and deportations. He reaffirmed the demand to deport all individuals who entered during the Biden administration without authorization. But he urged a strategic approach. Available resources are limited, therefore one must first focus on the most dangerous individuals.
The statements mark an unusually open dissent within the Republicans. While the White House pushes for maximum toughness, concern is growing within its own ranks that the current line is reaching its political and organizational limits.
Another death in the Iran war - New York police officer dies in Kuwait
In addition to the seven fallen US soldiers, another death connected to the Iran war has become known. A New York police officer who had been deployed to Kuwait with the US Army National Guard died on Friday after a medical emergency. Local authorities confirmed the death on Saturday. The officer was part of the forces stationed in the region in the course of the conflict. No further details were released regarding the exact circumstances of the medical incident. It remains unclear whether external factors in the operational environment played a role. With each additional death, the list of victims claimed by this war grows - not only through direct combat actions, but also through burdens that operate in the shadow of the front lines.
Golf instead of crisis staff - Trump on the course while soldiers die
One week after the war he declared began, Donald Trump spends the day on the golf course. The cost is borne by the taxpayer. Meanwhile, seven US soldiers and a New York police officer who had been deployed to Kuwait with the US Army National Guard have already died, almost 20 others have been injured. The fighting continues, the number of casualties rises.
The image appears like a counterprogram to the situation at the front. Families mourn, the wounded are treated, military units operate under pressure. In the White House, however, a different tempo prevails. A president who bears responsibility for military decisions also sends a signal through his daily schedule. Criticism comes not only from the political opposition. In times of armed conflict, presence is expected from political leadership. Whether playing golf in such a phase is appropriate is likely to further fuel the debate about responsibility and priorities.
Black rain over Tehran - After airstrikes the city sinks into an oil haze
After the attacks on oil depots, not only industrial facilities are burning in Tehran. Burning fuel ran over streets, flowed into sewage channels and drainage systems. In several places, drains reportedly continue to explode because flammable residues have accumulated there. Parts of the city resemble an industrial fire under open sky.
In the morning, a heavy black cloud lies over the metropolis. Witnesses report dense plumes of smoke, dark precipitation, a biting smell that settles into apartments. The rainwater is black, people say from various districts. What falls from the sky does not appear like ordinary smog, but like a mixture of burned oil and fine soot particles.
Tehran at night - This war is running completely out of control from all sides and participants - After attacks on oil storage sites, flames shot onto the street, leaking fuel streamed into sewage and drainage systems. The footage shows how quickly the destruction spreads to civilian infrastructure.
If refineries or large storage facilities were hit, the health consequences could extend far beyond the acute phase. Fine particles, toxic gases, and burned hydrocarbons penetrate homes, schools, and hospitals. For children, the elderly, and people with preexisting conditions, the risk rises significantly. While military authorities speak of strategic targets, daily life in the capital changes noticeably. Streets are closed, people wear masks, clinics prepare for respiratory illnesses. The air itself becomes the problem.
After the attacks on oil storage facilities, flames spread onto the street. Fuel flowed into sewage and drainage channels.
Our reporting continues. We are on our way to Bandar Abbas and then to Minab to document the situation outside the capital.
