By Christian Edwards, CNN

(CNN) — The killing of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei by the United States and Israel has created a power vacuum in the core of the Iranian regime and sparked the complex process of finding his successor.

The Islamic Republic has only replaced its supreme leader once since it swept to power nearly half a century ago. Khamenei, who succeeded Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini in 1989, was killed without an officially declared heir.

A three-person council was formed Sunday to hold power until Khamenei’s successor is chosen. But with the US-Israeli strikes ongoing, there is no indication of how long that might take.

Here’s what to know.

Who’s in charge right now?

Under Iran’s constitution, a three-person leadership council holds power until the new supreme leader is named. It includes the moderate president, Masoud Pezeshkian, the hard-line head of the judiciary, Gholamhossein Mohseni Ejei, and a senior cleric, Alireza Arafi.

The powerful speaker of Iran’s parliament, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, said the regime had “prepared ourselves for these moments” and “planned for all scenarios.”

“With the formation of a leadership council, an unimaginable power and cohesion will take shape,” he said.

What it may not have planned for, however, is to have lost several of its most senior officials at once. Israel has claimed that a “majority” of Iran’s senior military leaders were killed in Saturday’s strikes, including the armed forces chief of staff, Maj. Gen. Abdolrahim Mousavi; the commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, Maj. Gen. Mohammad Pakpour; and the secretary of Iran’s Defense Council, Ali Shamkhani.

When Khomeini died in 1989 — after the Iran-Iraq War, which lasted most of that decade — it took less than a day for Khamenei to be named as his successor, meaning there was no need to form a transition council. With US-Israeli strikes ongoing, naming Khamenei’s successor will take longer.

Until then, the temporary council must decide whether to continue delegating defense decision-making to Ali Larijani, Iran’s top national security official, and Ghalibaf. Both men were tasked with leading Iran’s defense during the 12-day war with Israel in June, along with Shamkhani, a former navy rear admiral who was killed in Saturday’s strikes.

Who chooses the new leader?

A body of 88 senior clerics, known as the Assembly of Experts, will select Khamenei’s successor.

The members of the Assembly of Experts, which is elected by the Iranian public every eight years, are vetted by the Guardian Council, a separate body of 12 jurists that oversees the activities of Iran’s parliament.

In normal times, the Guardian Council determines if legislation passed by the parliament is compatible with sharia law, and it often demands revisions. It also approves candidates for parliament, the presidency and the Assembly of Experts.

It is known for disqualifying candidates for the presidency. Ahead of the 2021 election, for instance, the Guardian Council barred over 600 applicants, including all the women as well as senior figures such as Larijani, the top national security official.

Sanam Vakil, director of the Middle East and North Africa program at the Chatham House think tank, said the Assembly of Experts may not convene until the US and Israel wind down their operation. “They cannot risk further death and damage to the institution,” she told CNN.

Who are the contenders?

Khamenei’s second son, Mojtaba, is a significant figure with strong links to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), the elite wing of Iran’s military, as well as the Basij, a volunte

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Por Erick E. Beltran, CNN en Español

Este domingo 1 de marzo Shakira realizará un concierto gratuito en el Zócalo de la Ciudad de México. El espectáculo está programado para comenzar a las 8:00 p.m. hora local y se podrá ver a través de pantallas gigantes desde la Alameda Central y el Monumento a la Revolución, así como en las calles 20 de noviembre, Pino Suárez y 5 de mayo.

A través de un comunicado, el Gobierno de la Ciudad de México informó que desplegará un operativo especial en el que participarán más de 6.500 elementos de diversas dependencias para brindar atención a los asistentes. En el área de transporte se destacó que las líneas 1, 2 y 9 del metro extenderán su horario hasta la 1:00 a.m. del lunes 2 de marzo con la finalidad de que las personas que asistan al concierto puedan volver a casa. De igual forma, el servicio de Metrobús, en las líneas 1 y 7, y las líneas 1,2 y 5 del Servicio de Transportes Eléctricos de la capital mexicana se extenderán hasta la 1:00 a.m. del lunes.

El Gobierno de la ciudad también informó sobre los objetos con los que no se permitirá el acceso al evento, dentro de los que destacan: objetos punzocortantes, bebidas alcohólicas, envases de vidrio, hieleras, aerosoles, sillas y mascotas. Mientras que los objetos con los que sí se podrá entrar al concierto de la colombiana son: bolsas de mano y cangureras, binoculares, celulares, impermeables y chamarras, así como baterías portátiles para celular.

Shakira confirmó en una publicación en sus redes sociales que parte del espectáculo también contará con una transmisión especial a través de sus canales oficiales.
La presentación de Shakira en el Zócalo de la Ciudad de México no será su único show gratuito y multitudinario del año: la superestrella de la música también tiene programada una presentación con entrada libre en la playa Copacabana de Río de Janeiro, en Brasil, para el próximo 2 de mayo.

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By Kara Fox, CNN

(CNN) — Iranians awoke Sunday for the first time in decades without supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei after he was killed in US-Israeli strikes, a profound shift in the nation’s history.

As Israel continues its attacks on Iran amid Tehran’s vow to avenge Khamenei’s death, people across the capital and beyond are grappling with conflicting feelings.

While the killing of Khamenei – a symbol, for many, of decades of brutal repression and economic mismanagement – prompted pockets of celebration Saturday night, others are voicing unease about what comes next, the implications of US intervention and anxiety about a widening regional war.

“We’re safe for now. There haven’t been many strong explosions in the west of the city, so we are going to try and stay in Tehran for now,” one Tehran resident told CNN on Sunday, adding: “People are happy that Khamenei was killed.”

But that joy is tempered.

“I’m happy he is gone, but I almost don’t believe that it has happened. So many of us are in disbelief, I don’t even think I can celebrate yet,” another person told CNN, underscoring fears that a conflict barely a day old could rapidly further spiral.

Israeli strikes have hit targets across Iran, with one killing over 150 girls at an elementary school near a military base in the southern city of Minab, according to Iranian state media.

In response to the US and Israeli assault, Iran has launched retaliatory attacks against Israeli and US military bases in several countries. Blasts have been reported across the region, from Doha to the beaches of Dubai, with three US soldiers killed, at least nine people in Israel and dozens of other causalities.

In northern Tehran’s Tajrish district, one local said streets were “pretty empty” on Sunday.

“Some people are milling about but no one is out celebrating or protesting really where I am,” they told CNN.

“Last night people were celebrating near Tajrish, you could hear them but also you could hear some gunshots. I’m apprehensive about what Khamenei’s death means – I don’t think it’s going to lead to change anytime soon. But I take heart in knowing he is gone,” the person said.

Videos shared by anti-regime activist accounts and geolocated by CNN shows multiple cars honking their horns surrounded by people out in the streets of the central Iranian city of Isfahan, waving clothes in celebration.

In another video from the city of Abdanan, in western Iran, people cheered from inside their cars on a congested roundabout. Another video showed people in the Iranian town of Galleh Dar toppling a monument dedicated to Khamenei’s predecessor and founder of the Islamic Republic, the former Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, as flames rose from the roundabout and onlookers cheered.

That celebratory mood, however, is far from universal.

On Sunday morning, large crowds of pro-regime supporters gathered in public squares and mosques across the country in a display of support for the regime that Israel and US President Donald Trump have vowed to topple.

“Some might be happy with Khamenei’s death, but the majority are worried about the consequences and the future developments in the country, particularly in relation to the conflict and likely instability,” one resident told CNN.

“I personally expect escalation vis-a-vis US-Israel,” the resident said.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Sunday that strikes against Iran will increase in the coming days.

The death of a figure who dominated Iranian politics, religion and foreign policy for more than three decades (and who never formally named a successor) has