US Offers $10 Million Reward for Information on Iran's New Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei

The United States offered a reward of up to $10 million for information on Iran's new Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei and senior military and intelligence officials, according to Reuters and ANSA, as Washington escalated pressure on Tehran following the assassination of Ali Khamenei on February 28, 2026. The reward program specifically targets IRGC leadership and other key figures within Iran's security and intelligence apparatus. Mojtaba Khamenei, the second child of the late supreme leader, was elected by the Assembly of Experts to succeed his father as the third supreme leader of Iran. The U.S. reward offer came as Mojtaba Khamenei had not appeared in public since his appointment, prompting speculation about his health and physical condition.

Iran's foreign minister moved to dismiss those concerns on March 14, 2026, stating publicly that there was no problem with the new supreme leader. The statement, reported by Reuters, Mediapart, and LaSexta, appeared aimed at countering international speculation fueled by Mojtaba Khamenei's continued absence from public view. Reports had circulated that the new leader may have been wounded or disfigured. The Iranian government offered no further details or evidence to substantiate the minister's assurances. Ali Khamenei served as Iran's second supreme leader from 1989 until his assassination on February 28, 2026, according to his Wikipedia entry. He had previously served as Iran's president from 1981 to 1989. Following his death, an Interim Leadership Council was formed, consisting of President Masoud Pezeshkian, Chief Justice Gholam-Hossein Mohseni-Eje'i, and Alireza Arafi, a member of both the Guardian Council and the Assembly of Experts, before the Assembly of Experts elected Mojtaba Khamenei as the new supreme leader.

10 (million USD) — U.S. reward for information on Iranian senior officials

Reza Pahlavi, the eldest son of Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, the last Shah of Iran, and an Iranian political activist and dissident in exile in the United States, declared his readiness to lead Iran through a transitional period. Pahlavi made the statement as reported by Portuguese outlets Jornal de Notícias, Diário de Notícias, and Notícias ao Minuto on March 14, 2026. He framed his readiness as conditional on the fall of the Islamic Republic. Pahlavi has long been described as the most prominent figure among Iranian opposition figures in exile. His statement came as Iran faced an unprecedented political situation following the assassination of Ali Khamenei and the installation of a new, largely unseen supreme leader.

„as soon as the Islamic Republic falls” (as soon as the Islamic Republic falls) — Reza Pahlavi via Jornal de Notícias

The convergence of the U.S. reward program, the Iranian government's defensive public statements, and Pahlavi's declaration illustrated the depth of uncertainty surrounding Iran's political future. Washington's decision to place a financial bounty on information related to Mojtaba Khamenei represented a significant escalation in U.S. pressure on the new Iranian leadership. The reward program has historically been used against designated terrorist organizations and hostile state actors. Iran's foreign minister's public denial of any problem with the supreme leader, absent any corroborating public appearance by Mojtaba Khamenei himself, left the question of his condition unresolved as of March 14, 2026. The situation left Iran's political trajectory deeply uncertain, with its new supreme leader invisible, its government on the defensive, and opposition figures abroad signaling their ambitions.