, March 3 -- Following the killing of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Iran has formed a three-member transitional council to manage state affairs.

Ayatollah Alireza Arafi, a member of the country's powerful constitutional watchdog, was appointed on Sunday to the interim council, which also includes President Masoud Pezeshkian and Supreme Court Chief Justice Gholam-Hossein Mohseni-Ejei.

Under Article 111 of Iran's constitution, the council will govern until the Assembly of Experts, an 88-member body, selects a new supreme leader. Khamenei's nearly 37-year rule ended Saturday following a deadly U.S.-Israeli attack, reports Al Jazeera .

The constitution mandates that the Assembly of Experts appoint a successor "as soon as possible"...