Iranian Nationals Celebrate Khamenei's Reported Death
Following reports that Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was killed in US-Israeli attacks, Iranian nationals gathered in The Hague and on Amsterdam's Dam Square over the weekend to celebrate. The public gatherings brought a major geopolitical event directly into Dutch urban public spaces.
The death of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, 86, in joint U.S.-Israeli strikes, set in motion a predetermined succession process. According to Iran's constitution, an 88-member Assembly of Experts must choose the new Supreme Leader, a process that has only occurred once before when Khamenei himself was appointed in 1989. In the interim, a temporary leadership council has assumed Khamenei's duties. This council includes Iran's president, Masoud Pezeshkian, and the head of the judiciary, Gholamhossein Mohseni Ejei. Potential permanent successors who have been subjects of speculation include Khamenei's son, Mojtaba, and Alireza Arafi, a cleric with close ties to the state's inner circle. The Dutch government has called the Iranian leadership a "murderous regime" and stated it "understands" the rationale behind the U.S.-Israeli attacks, while also warning against further regional escalation. This position is informed by Dutch intelligence services, which previously accused Iran of orchestrating the assassinations of two Dutch nationals of Iranian origin in 2015 and 2017. The celebrations took place in prominent Dutch public squares with long histories of protest. Amsterdam's Dam Square has been the epicenter of major demonstrations, including the violent "No housing, no coronation" squatters' riots in 1980 and large-scale Black Lives Matter protests that gathered thousands. Its use for protest often signals an event of national significance. The Netherlands is home to a significant Iranian diaspora of more than 52,000 people, many of whom originally arrived as political refugees after the 1979 revolution. The community is known for its high level of education and political activism, though it is also characterized by internal divisions that have resulted in fewer cohesive community organizations compared to other migrant groups. Following the strikes that killed Khamenei, Iran launched retaliatory missile attacks on Israel and U.S. bases in several Gulf states, including Bahrain, Kuwait, and the UAE. The attacks damaged civilian airports in Dubai and Abu Dhabi, causing unprecedented flight cancellations and escalating fears of a wider regional war.
