A look at who holds the reins of power in Iran since the country’s top leaders were killed

ATHENS, Greece (AP) 鈥� One after another, Israel has taken out Iran鈥檚 top leaders.

First it was Supreme Leader , killed in the opening shots of . Now the secretary of Iran鈥檚 Supreme National Security Council who was considered one of the most powerful figures in the country, has also been killed. As have military and political leaders.

With so many top leadership figures taken out, who is now running Iran? Here is a look at the country’s power structure, what is known 鈥� and what is not.

Khamenei鈥檚 successor

Ultimate authority in Iran rests with the country鈥檚 supreme leader, who has sat at the apex of power since the creation of the Islamic Republic in 1979 after the revolution that overthrew the shah.

After Khamenei was killed, his son, 56-year-old was quickly named to replace him as Iran鈥檚 new supreme leader. A secretive figure, the younger Khamenei has not been seen in public since the airstrike killed his 86-year-old father.

The cleric had long been considered a contender for the post, despite never having been elected or appointed to a government position. The younger Khamenei maintains close ties to the country鈥檚 powerful paramilitary Revolutionary Guard.

His views are believed to be even more hard-line than those of his father. Officially, he is now in charge of Iran鈥檚 armed forces, and any decision regarding the country鈥檚 nuclear program rests with him.

But is he truly running Iran?

Israel says Iran鈥檚 leadership is in disarray

鈥淚鈥檓 not sure who鈥檚 running Iran right now,鈥� Israeli Prime Minister said during a news conference Thursday night. 鈥淢ojtaba, the replacement ayatollah, has not shown his face. Have you seen him? We haven鈥檛, and we can鈥檛 vouch for what exactly is happening there.鈥�

Mojtaba Khamenei鈥檚 wife, Zahra Haddad Adel, was also killed in the Israeli strike that killed his father. U.S. and Israeli officials have suggested he was wounded in the same attack.

鈥淚ran鈥檚 command and control structure is in utter chaos,鈥� Netanyahu said.

Burcu Ozcelik, senior research fellow for Middle East security at the Royal United Services Institute, a United Kingdom-based defense and security think tank, said the elimination of so many of Iran鈥檚 top leaders will alter its theocracy 鈥� but that the change could be a gradual one.

鈥淟eadership matters, and the loss of key decision-makers spanning politics, intelligence, internal security and (the) army will have transformative consequences,鈥� Ozcelik said.

鈥淭he fixation on the terminology of 鈥榬egime collapse鈥� is obscuring the fact that the regime is already changing” due to the strikes against the country and the killing of high-level leaders. But the full impact of the war on the country could take time to emerge, Ozcelik explained.

鈥淲e need to be prepared for change that may take years, not weeks or months.鈥�

The Revolutionary Guard

For many analysts, true power now rests with Iran鈥檚 feared paramilitary .

鈥淭he Revolutionary Guard is the state now,鈥� said Ali Vaez, Iran project director at the International Crisis Group. Before the war, the country鈥檚 civilian leadership was 鈥渟ubservient entirely鈥� to the supreme leader, he explained, while the Guard was the second-most powerful force in the country.

But now, with the elder Khamenei gone and his son not enjoying the same authority as his father, 鈥渋t is really the Revolutionary Guards who are running the country.鈥�

The Guard rose out of as a force meant to protect the country鈥檚 Shiite cleric-overseen government. It later became enshrined in its constitution and operated parallel to Iran鈥檚 regular armed forces.

The Guard鈥檚 expeditionary Quds Force was key in creating what against Israel and the United States. It backed Syria鈥檚 former President Bashar Assad, the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah, Yemen鈥檚 Houthi rebels and other armed groups in the region.

An independent military

Early on in the war, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi suggested the country鈥檚 military units were acting independently from central government control.

鈥淥ur 鈥� military units are now in fact independent and somehow isolated and they are acting based on instructions 鈥� you know, general instructions 鈥� given to them in advance,鈥� Araghchi had said on Al Jazeera on March 1.

Pressed about Tehran鈥檚鈥� such as Oman, which had for Iran in recent nuclear talks with the U.S. 鈥� he said: 鈥淲hat happened in Oman was not our choice. We have already told our 鈥� army, armed forces to be careful about the targets that they choose.鈥�

鈥淢ultiple layers of leadership鈥�

The possibility of an Israeli or a U.S. attack on Iran had long been in the cards. It was something the Islamic Republic had factored into its planning, setting up multiple contingency plans, Vaez said.

鈥淚 think the mistake in the U.S. and in Israel is that they ended up believing their own rhetoric that Iran is akin to a terrorist organization, that decapitating the regime or removing one or two layers of political elite would result in paralysis and collapse,鈥� Vaez said. 鈥淲hereas this is a state, 鈥� it has multiple layers of leadership.鈥�

Even if all top generals are eliminated, he said, others lower down the ranks can pick up where their superiors left off. 鈥淭he expectation that this regime will 鈥� implode by removing a few dozen senior leaders, I think is nothing but an illusion.鈥�

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