Ayatollah Seyyed Mojtaba Khamenei is a prominent Iranian cleric and the second son of the late Leader and marja', Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei. He was born in 1969 in the city of Mashhad, one of Iran’s most important religious centers.

He began his religious education at the Ayatollah Mojtahedi Tehrani Seminary in Tehran, where he completed his introductory clerical studies. During the years of the Iran–Iraq War, referred to in Iran as the “Sacred Defense,” he joined Iranian fighters at the war fronts at the age of 17. After the end of the conflict, in 1989 he moved to the city of Qom to continue his seminary education, remaining there until the early months of 1992.

In 1992 he returned to Tehran, where he continued his religious studies for approximately five years. In 1997 he married Zahra HaddadAdel, the daughter of an Iranian philosopher and politician. They lived together for nearly 30 years and had three children before she was slaughtered by the U.S. and the Israeli regime. 

Also in 1992, Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei relocated to Qom once again in order to complete his advanced seminary education and pursue deeper religious scholarship.

During his years of study, Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei attended the advanced seminary courses (sotooh-e ‘ali) taught by several prominent scholars, including Ayatollahs Ahmadi Mianehji, Reza Ostadi, and Owsati. He later participated in the highest level of seminary instruction—known as the “dars-e kharej” in jurisprudence and principles of Islamic law—under the guidance of his father, Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei. He also studied with a number of leading Shiite authorities such as Grand Ayatollahs Sheikh Javad Tabrizi, Hossein Vahid Khorasani, Seyyed Musa Shobeiri Zanjani, Agha Mojtaba Tehrani, and Sheikh Mohammad Momen Qomi.

Over time he became actively involved in teaching at the highest levels of the seminary. For more than seventeen years he regularly delivered advanced lectures in Islamic jurisprudence and legal theory. His classes gained attention for their analytical style and for his engagement with classical scholarly debates. Students and senior scholars noted his habit of presenting detailed written notes in Arabic, raising critical questions about established positions, and maintaining ongoing scholarly discussions with his teachers outside the formal classroom.

Observers within the seminary often described his teaching as characterized by intellectual independence, disciplined reasoning, and a strong emphasis on methodological clarity in the study of jurisprudence, principles of law, and the science of hadith transmitters (rijal). These qualities led to a number of original contributions within the scholarly tradition of Shiite jurisprudence.

His teaching style combined careful study of classical authorities with structured and logical presentation. Over time, his advanced class in Qom grew into one of the most well-attended lectures in the seminary. Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, roughly four hundred students regularly attended his course. During the pandemic the lectures continued online, and even afterward the classes remained largely virtual due to his residence in Tehran.

At the beginning of the 2023 academic year of the Qom seminary, more than 1,300 students registered to attend his lectures, and about 700 participated in the opening session. However, in an unexpected decision he announced that he would suspend the course and asked forgiveness from his students for discontinuing it. The announcement surprised many within the seminary community.

Following the suspension of the lectures, around one thousand seminary students and teachers reportedly wrote a letter requesting that the classes resume, and several senior scholars conveyed similar requests informally. In a private meeting with some of his long-time students, he explained that the decision had spiritual reasons that he preferred not to disclose. He also emphasized that, in a period when many respected teachers had fewer students or had suspended their own courses, it would not be appropriate for his class alone to continue with such a large audience. He asked his students to end both public and private efforts calling for the course to restart.

According to accounts from those present, the matter was also discussed with his father. Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei reportedly told him that he could recommend the resumption of the class if necessary, but ultimately left the decision to his son.

Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei later encouraged his students to attend the lessons of other teachers, suggesting that they select instructors based on qualities such as scholarly competence, revolutionary commitment, and moral integrity. He eventually devoted greater attention to research and writing, including work related to commentary on classical jurisprudential texts and the revision of his own lectures in Islamic law and legal theory.

In addition to teaching and scholarship, he has been involved in supporting and establishing various academic and religious institutions aimed at strengthening jurisprudential studies in the Qom seminary. These institutions have attempted to combine scholarly work with social engagement, including programs focused on public service and assistance to disadvantaged communities.

Beyond his academic activities, Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei has maintained relationships with numerous senior clerics and religious scholars in Qom and Mashhad. Over the years he has also been closely associated with the leadership of the Islamic Republic, assisting his father in following a variety of political and administrative issues. Through this involvement he gained familiarity with many aspects of governance and maintained working relationships with senior officials across different periods.

His personal development was also influenced by contact with well-known figures in the fields of ethics and Islamic mysticism, including Ayatollahs Mohammad-Taqi Bahjat, Mohammad-Ali Behjat, Mirza Javad Agha Tehrani’s students, Sheikh Jafar Mojtahedi, and other spiritual teachers respected in Iranian religious circles.

Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei has also been known for his connections with military leaders and figures associated with Axis of Resistance, including martyred Hezbollah leader Seyyed Hassan Nasrallah and the late Iranian general Qassem Soleimani.

Among the people that have known him personally, he is seen as a scholar shaped by years of study, teaching, and engagement with both intellectual and social issues. They often emphasize his interest in broader policy discussions as well, including economic stability, housing development, agricultural reform, and emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence.

These various dimensions—religious scholarship, institutional activity, political familiarity, and international connections—have contributed to his prominence within certain circles of Iran’s clerical and political establishment.