Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has developed a secret “plan B” to flee to Russia in case security forces are unable to suppress mass protests or begin to desert. This was reported by the British newspaper The Times, citing an intelligence community report.
According to intelligence sources, the plan calls for the evacuation of 86-year-old Khamenei along with his inner circle of up to 20 people, including family members and trusted aides. Among them is the leader’s son, Mojtaba Khamenei, who is considered a possible successor.
“Plan B” will be activated if the army, police, or Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) refuse to follow orders or side with the protesters. Routes out of Tehran have already been prepared, as well as measures to transfer assets and property abroad.
Experts note that the model for such a plan was the flight of former Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, who fled to Moscow in December 2024 shortly before the fall of Damascus. Assad, an ally of both Khamenei and Vladimir Putin, was granted asylum in Russia.
Protests in Iran, which began last week due to the economic crisis — inflation above 36%, the collapse of the rial, and water and electricity shortages — have spread to more than 170 cities in 25 of 31 provinces. According to human rights organizations, at least 16 people have been killed and hundreds arrested.
In a recent speech, Khamenei acknowledged the legitimacy of the protesters’ economic demands, but promised to crack down hard on the “rebels.” Nevertheless, the intelligence report points to the regime’s growing vulnerability.