Six months into the war, Iran’s new leadership is presenting a more hard-line and unified front towards the United States while signalling that it will not tolerate renewed domestic unrest. The appointments suggest that the ruling system has consolidated power among long-serving military and clerical figures after senior leaders were killed in US and Israeli strikes, undermining earlier US expectations that pressure might produce a more accommodating government.

Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei, believed to have been wounded and not seen publicly since succeeding his father, has appointed allies including Mohsen Rezaei as national security chief and Hossein Taeb to lead the Basij force. Rezaei warned of major retaliation and threatened to halt Persian Gulf oil exports if economic pressure continued, while analysts said the selections emphasise internal cohesion and a tougher stance; however, they also cautioned that escalation could expose Iran to damaging retaliation. A June ceasefire had already collapsed amid further exchanges of strikes.