The writer is director of Chatham House’s Middle East and North Africa Programme
Three men — Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, US President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu — stand at the centre of the unfolding war between Israel and Iran. Each has wielded ideological conviction, personal style and strategic instinct to shape their leadership trajectories. Now, their egos and world views are colliding, with consequences for the wider Middle East. In war, it’s not just policies that matter — personalities do too. Indeed, the ambitions of leaders often steer history more than armies or institutions.
Khamenei, now 86, has spent more than three decades at the helm of the Islamic republic. While often cast as a cautious cleric who rose by default after Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini’s death in 1989, he has demonstrated shrewd adaptability and a consistent strategic vision. His leadership is marked by deep suspicion of the west and an unwavering belief in the Islamic republic’s mission as the vanguard of resistance against western imperialism and Israeli aggression at the expense of the Iranian people.