Iran's Power Struggle Over the Strait of Hormuz: Khamenei In-Law Claims President Pezeshkian's Next Resignation Will Be Accepted

The Critical Threats Project at the Institute for the Study of War assessed that the warning was likely issued to prevent Pezeshkian from using the threat of resignation as leverage during negotiations over the Strait of Hormuz .

The Strait of Hormuz Is the Real Flashpoint

The power struggle is fundamentally about a single strategic question: should Iran negotiate with the United States to reopen the Strait of Hormuz?

• Pezeshkian represents the pragmatist camp. He pushed for a negotiated settlement with the US to reopen the strait and relieve the immense economic pressure caused by the US naval blockade. In July 2026, Pezeshkian and the central bank chief had warned Khamenei that the economy was on the brink due to the blockade .
• Hardliners, including elements of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and figures like Kharrazi, oppose any deal with Washington. They want to keep the strait closed as a military lever .
• Kharrazi's August 3 leak appears designed to weaken Pezeshkian's position in internal debates over whether to negotiate, effectively sidelining the president from the strait negotiations .

As The Guardian reported on August 4, Pezeshkian was forced to deny claims that he had repeatedly threatened to resign as he battled hardline factions opposed to a settlement with the US over the Strait of Hormuz .

A Planned Security-Council Shakeup

Kharrazi also claimed that Khamenei plans to replace Supreme National Security Council (SNSC) Secretary Mohammad-Bagher Zolghadr, a Pezeshkian appointee, with Mohsen Rezaei, a former IRGC commander and Khamenei's top military adviser . The SNSC is the body that coordinates Iran's national security and nuclear negotiating strategy.

Replacing Zolghadr with Rezaei would consolidate hardline control over the council, further reducing pragmatist influence over the regime's approach to the United States and the Strait of Hormuz crisis. Analysts saw the resignation warning and the planned SNSC replacement as a coordinated effort by Mojtaba Khamenei to sideline pragmatists from key decision-making .

The Deeper Context: A New Supreme Leader After Assassination

These events took place during an unprecedented period for the Islamic Republic. Ali Khamenei was assassinated on February 28, 2026, at the beginning of the Iran war . Mojtaba Khamenei, his son, was elected as the new supreme leader by the Assembly of Experts on March 9, 2026 . He has not been seen in public since succeeding his father .

The resignation leak and the push for a security-council shakeup are the most significant public signs of internal division under the new supreme leader, driven by the existential pressure of the ongoing conflict and the naval blockade.