Alex Ritson

You know, as a question mark, the degree to which he will be told what to do by Larijani, or maybe he'll try and tell him what to do.

So we'll see if it makes any difference.

We'll see, as you say, whether he lives.

For the Iranians, and I realize that you can take this question more than one way, is he a good choice?

I don't think they've got many good choices at the moment, whatever happens.

I mean, they are in, whichever way you look at it, the regime, the opponents of the regime, people who don't want to get involved in politics, just trying to live their lives.

Everybody in Iran right now is in a tremendously difficult position, clearly, facing some of the greatest challenges they'll ever face in their whole lives.

There are so many uncertainties about the way ahead.

At the moment, the Iranian strategy...

recognizing that, of course, they can't outgun the Americans and the Israelis, is to spread the pain and hope that second and third order consequences caused by attacks on Kuwait or the UAE or Qatar or Saudi Arabia or others, or on the oil industry through squeezing exports going out through the Strait of Hormuz, their hope would be that they get to a place where Donald Trump will declare victory while they still survive.

And if they survive at the end of it, they will declare victory too.

But that's quite a way off potentially.

I mean, we don't know because at the moment, no side is suggesting, neither side is suggesting that they want to buckle on this one.

Mojtada Khomeini is said to be a right winger, although not many people seem to know a lot about him.

Well, he's never had an official position.

He's been talked about as a potential supreme leader for some years.

But I think they were wary about looking too much like a dynastical succession position.

like a dynastic succession like the Shah.

You know, at the moment, the son of the late Shah, who's now a man in his 60s, is going around touting himself as a potential future leader, not with a great deal of success, it has to be said.

Of course, outside Iran.