After Massive Strikes, Iran’s Supreme Leader’s Fate Remains Unclear

Analysts say [Ayatollah Ali Khamenei’s] authority extends through a deeply embedded network spanning the military, intelligence services, and political institutions. Researchers have described that system—often referred to as the “Bayt”—as a parallel structure that functions alongside Iran’s formal government. “The Bayt is the hidden nerve center of the regime in Iran . . . it operates as a state within a state,” Kasra Aarabi of United Against Nuclear Iran said. He added that the network is designed to endure even if the individual at its center is removed. “Even if he is eliminated, the Bayt as an institution enables the Supreme Leader to function,” Aarabi said. “Think of the Supreme Leader as an institution rather than just a single individual.”