Iran's supreme leader runs 'state within a state' through secret 4,000-person network, report says

FIRST ON FOX: A caller study detailing the interior workings of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei’s bureau says the Islamic Republic’s existent bid operation lies not successful Iran’s disposable government, but successful a shadiness apparatus designed to sphere authorities power adjacent if the ultimate person himself disappears from nationalist view.

The report, Unmasking the Bayt: Inside the Supreme Leader’s Office, published by United Against Nuclear Iran (UANI) and authored by Saeid Golkar and Kasra Aarabi, describes the Bayt, the Office of the Supreme Leader, arsenic a immense organization web embedded crossed Iran’s military, economy, spiritual institutions and authorities bureaucracy.

"It is the hidden nervus halfway of the authorities successful Iran… it operates arsenic a authorities wrong a state," Aarabi said successful an interrogation with Fox News Digital.

Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Hosseini Khamenei meets with Islamic Republic of Iran Air Force commanders and Islamic Republic of Iran Air Defense Force officers astatine the Imam Khomeini Husayniyya successful Tehran, Iran connected Feb. 05, 2024.  ((Photo by Iranian Leader Press Office / Handout /Anadolu via Getty Images))

According to Aarabi, the strategy allows Khamenei to oversee and power decision-making astatine each level of the Islamic Republic, including atomic policy, warfare readying and interior security.

"This is what gives Khamenei implicit control. It’s not the disposable state, this is the invisible state," helium said.

The study estimates astir 4,000 radical run wrong the Bayt’s halfway structure, with tens of thousands much moving done affiliated institutions crossed the country.

"There’s astir 4,000 adjacent employees… deliberation of them arsenic commissars… the existent policymakers," Aarabi said. "Beyond that, the Bayt’s umbrella has 40,000 individuals moving for it… entrenched astatine each azygous furniture of policy, each azygous authorities entity."

The study maps a tightly controlled interior ellipse astatine the apical of the Bayt, including Khamenei’s sons, peculiarly Mojtaba Khamenei, who is described arsenic operating similar a "mini-supreme leader" wrong his father’s office. 

It details however the operation reaches straight into Iran’s subject concatenation of command, with elder promotions requiring support from the Supreme Leader’s bureau and parallel counterintelligence bodies monitoring loyalty crossed the equipped forces. The Bayt, the study says, besides plays a decisive relation successful atomic negotiations and wartime decision-making, ensuring eventual authorization remains concentrated astir the ultimate leader.

The network, Aarabi said, efficaciously duplicates authorities ministries wrong Khamenei’s office, allowing nonstop oversight and ideological enforcement crossed authorities agencies, universities and taste institutions.

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Military members of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) successful occidental Tehran, Iran (Morteza Nikoubazl/NurPhoto via Getty Images)

The study besides outlines however the Bayt sustains authorities durability done power of the economy, spiritual institutions and the acquisition system. Networks of foundations and conglomerates tied to the ultimate person oversee large sectors of Iran’s economy, portion clerical institutions, universities and taste bodies are monitored by embedded representatives tasked with enforcing ideological compliance and suppressing dissent.

"Think of the Bayt arsenic the nucleus of the halfway powerfulness of the regime," Aarabi said.

The findings travel amid renewed speculation astir Khamenei’s wellness and reduced nationalist visibility, arsenic good arsenic increasing determination tensions and the anticipation of subject confrontation involving Iran.

Aarabi pushed backmost connected suggestions that Khamenei’s lack from nationalist appearances signals weakening authorization oregon interior fragmentation.

"We saw this during the 12-day war… adjacent if helium is hiding successful a bunker, helium is successful afloat control. The Bayt has been tightening Khamenei’s grip connected power," helium said.

The structure, helium argued, was deliberately built to relation adjacent without the ultimate person physically present.

"Even if helium is eliminated, the Bayt arsenic an instauration enables the ultimate person to function," Aarabi said. "Think of the ultimate person arsenic an instauration alternatively than conscionable a azygous individual."

The study places the Bayt astatine the apical of Iran’s powerfulness hierarchy, supra the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and the ceremonial government.

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Iran's Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei pictured  sitting adjacent to elder subject authoritative successful Iran. (Getty Images)

"The Bayt is the halfway apparatus… the strategical policymaking assemblage that is driving the ballistic rocket program, the atomic program, [and] determination destabilization," Aarabi said.

The implications, helium added, are important for policymakers successful Washington and crossed the region, peculiarly arsenic the U.S. weighs options for confronting Iran’s atomic programme and determination activities.

"Eliminating Khamenei successful isolation connected its ain is not enough… you person to dismantle this extended apparatus that helium has created," Aarabi said.

Instead, immoderate effort to weaken the authorities would necessitate targeting the broader organization operation surrounding the ultimate leader, not conscionable the idiosyncratic astatine its center.

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Iranian worshippers are praying nether a banner featuring a elephantine representation of Iran's Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, during a ceremonial commemorating assassinated Hamas Leader, Ismail Haniyeh, astatine the Imam Khomeini Grand Mosque successful Tehran, Iran, connected August 9, 2024. Ismail Haniyeh was killed successful his residency successful bluish Tehran the time aft the inauguration ceremonial of Iran's caller president, Masoud Pezeshkian.  (Morteza Nikoubazl/NurPhoto via Getty Images)

"It involves a broad strategy… cyber operations, sanctions, [and] a subject component," helium said. "For immoderate meaningful alteration successful Iran… you person to spell aft the halfway nucleus of powerfulness wrong the Islamic regime, and that is the Bayt."

He said connected reports of Khamenei being a people that, "the elimination of Khamenei unsocial is not enough… dismantling the extended apparatus of the Bayt is essential," helium added.

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