An Israeli airstrike on Tuesday hit the building of a body tasked with electing Iran’s new supreme leader, an Israeli defense source said, after former leader Ali Khamenei was killed by Israel on Saturday.

The assembly is tasked with appointing, supervising, and potentially dismissing the supreme leader.

“The American-Zionist criminals attacked the Assembly of Experts building in Qom,” south of Tehran, Iran’s Tasnim news agency reported.

An Israeli defense source confirmed that the Israeli Air Force had struck the building in Qom where senior clerics had gathered to choose Iran’s new supreme leader.

The Assembly of Experts has 88 members, though it was unclear how many of them were at the building at the time of the strike, according to the official.

Local media showed footage of the building severely damaged in the strikes. There was no information on any potential casualties.

Geolocation of the building struck today in this video in the Iranian city of Qom. 34.62534, 50.87639The building belongs to the "Assembly of Religious Experts" who select the next Islamic Revolutions' Supreme Leader.https://t.co/nH9hNR5Tou pic.twitter.com/TgUGCYmmhv — Mehdi H. (@mhmiranusa) March 3, 2026

Geolocation of the building struck today in this video in the Iranian city of Qom. 34.62534, 50.87639The building belongs to the "Assembly of Religious Experts" who select the next Islamic Revolutions' Supreme Leader.https://t.co/nH9hNR5Tou pic.twitter.com/TgUGCYmmhv

— Mehdi H. (@mhmiranusa) March 3, 2026

The Mehr news agency claimed that the building was “old” and “is not used for meetings.”

Tasnim reported that strikes had already targeted the main headquarters of the Assembly of Experts in Tehran on Monday.

Iran declared on Sunday the start of a transition process after confirming Khamenei’s death.

The plans include the formation of an interim leadership council, including the president, the head of the judiciary and a jurist from the Guardian Council, the body that oversees legislation and vets electoral candidates.

Also playing a central role is Iran’s top security chief, Ali Larijani.

The interim leadership council will lead the country while a permanent successor is found for the supreme leader.

Are you relying on The Times of Israel for accurate and timely coverage of the Iran war right now? If so, please join The Times of Israel Community. For as little as $6/month, you will:

Support our independent journalists who are working around the clock under difficult conditions to cover this conflict;

Read ToI with a clear, ads-free experience on our site, apps and emails; and

Gain access to exclusive content shared only with the ToI Community, including weekly letters from founding editor David Horovitz.

We’re really pleased that you’ve read X Times of Israel articles in the past month.

You clearly find our careful reporting of the Iran war valuable, at a time when facts are often distorted and news coverage often lacks context.

Your support is essential to continue our work. We want to continue delivering the professional journalism you value, even as the demands on our newsroom have grown dramatically during this ongoing conflict.

So today, please consider joining our reader support group, The Times of Israel Community. For as little as $6 a month you'll become our partners while enjoying The Times of Israel AD-FREE, as well as accessing exclusive content available only to Times of Israel Community members.

Thank you,David Horovitz, Founding Editor of The Times of Israel

1 PM: Iran’s nuke program would have been ‘immune in months’; Witkoff: They bragged to us about enrichment

2 Rubio cites planned Israeli attack as a key reason US launched strikes against Iran

3 ‘Depart now’: US tells its citizens to urgently leave almost all Mideast countries, including Israel

4 Iran claims Hormuz Strait is closed, threatens to set shipping there ‘ablaze’

5 As war widens, Trump says US has yet to launch largest strikes on Iran

6 El Al readies rescue flights as Israel set to gradually reopen airspace next week

7 Hours after Trump announced ban on Claude AI, US military used it in Iran strikes — reports

8 IDF sends troops further into south Lebanon and strikes Beirut amid Hezbollah attacks

2026 US-Israel war with Iran

© The Times of Israel