Lethal elite ‘black-clad’ kill squad guards Iran’s new Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei
An elite counterterrorism unit has been deployed to protect Iran’s newly appointed Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei, following the assassination of his father, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Fox News Digital has learned.
The force, known as NOPO — Iran’s black-clad Counterterrorism Special Force — was assigned to safeguard the leader after a U.S.-Israel strike on a Tehran compound on Feb. 28 killed the elder Khamenei amid the start of Operation Epic Fury.
“With Khamenei gone, NOPO will now be protecting Mojtaba Khamenei,” Ali Safavi, an official with the Foreign Affairs Committee of the Paris-based National Council of Resistance of Iran, or NCRI said.
The force, formed in 1991, was initially the “nucleus” of the IRGC’s 28th Ruhollah (Khomeini’s first name) Division, according to Safavi, and typically handles hostage rescue operations.
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The history of the unit also includes deployments against internal security threats, and it has often been called on to suppress protests.
Iran’s Assembly of Experts elected Mojtaba Khamenei on March 8, 2026, elevating him as the third Supreme Leader of the Islamic Republic.
His succession comes amid ongoing war with the U.S. and Israel, but so far, Mojtaba Khamenei has not been heard from since the start of the conflict.
According to The Times of Israel, Iranian state television reported that Mojtaba Khamenei was wounded in the war, with the reports yet unconfirmed.
“NOPO is the Farsi acronym for Nirouyeh Vijeh Pasdaran Velayat, which translates into the Special Force to Protect the Supreme Leader,” Safavi further explained.
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Over time, NOPO has evolved into a highly specialized unit distinct from the broader Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), the military branch established in 1979 to defend the Islamic Republic and its leadership from internal and external threats.
“The NOPO is composed of six brigades only. Four are stationed in Tehran, one in Mashhad and one in Isfahan,” Safavi said.
“They are far more lethal, ruthless and well-trained than the IRGC,” he claimed before describing how the brigade’s loyalty was exclusively to the Supreme Leader.
“This force was only used for the protection of Khamenei,” Safavi continued. “They are very well equipped. Khamenei did not trust any other security force for his protection.”
Safavi also said some members of the unit were killed in Ali Khamenei’s assassination but that the force remains fully operational.
“Some of the NOPO were killed when Khamenei was killed, but the fact is that they are now involved in the suppressive and security measures the regime has also undertaken in recent days to prevent any outbreak of protests,” Safavi said.
The elite force’s activities extend beyond personal protection in times of crisis, Safavi added.
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“But in times of crisis, such as what happened during the January uprising, they were heavily involved in opening fire on the protesters,” he said.
This comes amid reports that hundreds of NOPO members have also been widely deployed around prisons in Iran that are holding political detainees.
“Hundreds of suppressive forces are widely deployed around the prison. In Ghezel Hesar Prison,” the NCRI said in a statement.
On Tuesday, March 3, 2026, following the bombing of a military center near Mahabad Prison, prisoners whose ward doors had been locked protested and set fire to their blankets, demanding their release under wartime conditions.
“Suppressive forces responded by firing tear gas into the ward,” the NCRI reported.
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Reports also indicated NOPO had taken control of Evin Prison in Tehran following the flight of regular prison officials amid intensified conflict.
In 2021, the U.S. Treasury Department imposed sanctions on NOPO for its part in committing “serious human rights abuses against persons in Iran or Iranian citizens or residents, or the family members of the foregoing.”
Top Iranian cybercriminal on FBI most wanted list reportedly killed in US-Israeli strike
A top Iranian hacker long wanted by the FBI was killed last week following a joint Israeli strike on Iran, according to an Iranian media outlet.
Mohammad Mehdi Farhadi Ramin, an Iranian man accused of stealing the identities of American citizens and accessing national security data, died in the city of Hamadan, Iran International said, adding that his funeral was held on Monday.
Farhadi had been wanted by U.S. authorities since 2020 for his “alleged involvement in malicious cyber activity” dating back to at least 2013, according to the FBI.
Among his alleged crimes, Farhadi reportedly targeted companies, universities, U.S. defense contractors, and nonprofits to access sensitive data. Authorities say he also stole credit card information and Social Security numbers belonging to U.S. citizens to fund illicit activities, while marketing some of the stolen data on the black market.
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Ramin was first indicted on Sept. 15, 2020, by a federal grand jury in Newark, New Jersey, for his alleged involvement in a massive, coordinated cyber intrusion campaign on behalf of the Iranian government.
Ramin and a co‑defendant reportedly vandalized websites with ideological messaging meant to project Iranian influence, including images of burning Israeli flags and threats that appeared to “signal the demise” of countries viewed as rivals to Iran, including the U.S., Israel and Saudi Arabia.
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“They brazenly infiltrated computer systems and targeted intellectual property and often sought to intimidate perceived enemies of Iran, including dissidents fighting for human rights in Iran and around the world,” the Justice Department previously said.
“This conduct threatens our national security, and as a result, these defendants are wanted by the FBI and are considered fugitives from justice.”
Authorities alleged that the suspect also compromised email accounts by creating hidden automated forwarding rules that secretly sent all incoming and outgoing emails directly to him and his co-conspirators.
Officials emphasized that these actions allowed Iran to access a massive volume of stolen information, including hundreds of terabytes of data related to national security, foreign policy, civilian nuclear research, aerospace and unpublished scientific studies.
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Fox News Digital reached out to the Pentagon for more information.
US strike on key Iran oil hub would fit Trump’s ‘energy dominance doctrine,’ expert says
Kharg Island, which handles the bulk of Iran’s crude exports and was once floated by President Donald Trump as a potential target could spark broader regional instability and attacks on energy infrastructure if struck by the U.S., a leading energy security expert has warned.
Reports indicate the Trump administration is weighing options that could include a direct attack on Kharg Island.
Discussing the possibility of boots on the ground amid Operation Epic Fury on “The Claman Countdown,” retired Army Brig. Gen. Mark Kimmitt also told Liz Claman striking Kharg could be in the “offing.”
“I don’t think a significant number of boots on the ground, other than the chance of an assault on Kharg Island, is in the offing,” he said March 9.
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Trump’s interest in the island dates back to a 1988 interview in which he reportedly suggested targeting Kharg in response to Iranian aggression, according to reports.
“I’d be harsh on Iran. They’ve been beating us psychologically, making us look like a bunch of fools,” Trump said. “One bullet shot at one of our men or ships, and I’d do a number on Kharg Island. I’d go in and take it.”
Sara Vakhshouri, a global energy analyst, said striking Kharg aligns squarely with Washington’s “energy dominance” doctrine and spoke as U.S. and Israeli military action in Iran rattles energy markets and disrupts oil flows through the Strait of Hormuz.
“Kharg currently acts as a strategic restraint point in the conflict,” Vakhshouri, founder and president of SVB Energy International, told Fox News Digital.
“Interrupting Iran’s main export terminal would likely trigger a major oil price spike, market instability and regional retaliation against energy infrastructure.”
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Kharg’s significance is not only tactical but strategic, she added, arguing that it fits squarely within Trump’s long-touted doctrine.
The policy, central to Trump’s first term, prioritized maximizing U.S. oil and gas production, expanding exports and leveraging U.S. energy strength as a geopolitical tool.
“But when we talk about Kharg, the most important factor is that it fits within the U.S. energy dominance concept,” Vakhshouri said, suggesting that holding the island in reserve as a pressure point — rather than immediately striking it — may be a more strategic option.
Kharg sits in the northern Persian Gulf, roughly 15 miles off Iran’s mainland. Tankers leaving the terminal pass through the Strait of Hormuz, the narrow choke point that handles about one-fifth of global oil trade.
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Around 90% to 95% of Iran’s crude and petroleum exports pass through Kharg, making it the regime’s primary oil revenue hub.
“Roughly 15 to 20 million barrels may be in storage, with around 1.5 to 3 million barrels per day exported through the terminal during the sanctions, with export capacity up to 5 million barrels per day,” Vakhshouri said.
“If the export capability from Kharg were lost, this restraint could diminish, shifting the risk toward further strikes on regional energy facilities and, more importantly, prolonged disruption of oil flows and tanker traffic through the Strait of Hormuz,” she warned.
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“Putting a price ceiling on such a scenario would depend largely on Iran’s retaliatory actions,” Vakhshouri added.
“The certain outcome, however, would be prolonged volatility and uncertainty in the market, driven by fears of further retaliation or an extended cycle of disruption.”
Fox News Digital has reached out to the White House for comment.