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Home , Ahmad Jannati, Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, Ali Akbar Salehi, Ali Larijani, Fereydoon Abbasi, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad

A Who’s Who of The 20 most important government (political and military) leaders and opposition leaders in Iran

Matthew Duss

Government leaders Mohammed-Javad Larijani: A top advisor and spokesman for the . Larijani is often a : The supreme leader, spokesman for the regime to the highest political and religious . authority in the of Iran. He succeeded : Current chairman of Khomeini in 1989 and has steadily the Iranian Parliament. The younger worked since then to increase his brother of Mohammed Javad, he is office’s power and marginalize all internal opposition. also the former secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council. : The second son of the supreme leader. Mojtaba in 2009 took control of the mili- Mohammad-Bagher Ghalibaf: The current mayor of tia—a volunteer paramilitary wing of the Revolutionary . Ghalibaf is seen as a frontrunner to succeed Guards—and oversaw its crackdown on green move- as . ment protesters. Many believe he is being groomed to succeed his father as supreme leader. : Currently the secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Mahmoud Ahmadinejad: The cur- Council, the equivalent of the U.S. rent president of Iran, first elected to national security council, as well the position in 2005. His controversial as Iran’s lead nuclear negotiator. re-election in 2009, which many Previously he served as Iran’s deputy believe was fraudulent, led to massive foreign minister for European and American Affairs. street . His subsequent efforts to expand his own power resulted in a backlash from Major General Mohammed Ali Jaafari: Commander Khamenei and his supporters and a severe curtailing of of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards Corps. Jaafari was his influence. appointed to the position by the supreme leader in September 2007. Mohammed-Taghi Mesbah Yazdi: A hardline cleric and former spiritual advisor to Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. Yazdi is leader of the ultraconservative faction in the parliament. Continued on next page

1 Center for American Progress | A Who’s Who of Iran Major General Qassem Soleimani: Commander of the Opposition , a unit of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards Mohammed Khatami: President of Corps tasked with managing Iran’s relationships with Iran from 1997 to 2005. One of Iran’s extremist groups outside Iran. He has held the position most prominent reformers, Khatami since 2000 and is seen as a possible future commander is a persistent critic of President of the Revolutionary Guards. Ahmadinejad.

Mohsen Rezaei: Currently the secre- tary of the Expediency Council, which Mir Hossein Mousavi: Prime Min- manages disputes between the Majlis ister of Iran from 1981 to 1989. In and Council. Rezaei was 2009 he was the reform candidate formerly the Iranian Revolutionary for president around whom the Guards Corps commander. A 2009 green movement coalesced. Consid- presidential candidate, Rezaei initially complained about ered one of the green movement’s voting irregularities but later withdrew his complaint. He leading figures, he has been under since has been critical of the treatment of protesters detained February 2011. during the 2009 demonstrations. : Former chairman Hashemi Rafsanjani: Served of the Association of Combat- as president of Iran from 1989 to ant Clerics, a political party, and a 1997. He was recently reappointed member of the Expediency Council. by Khamenei as chairman of the Karroubi ran for president in 2009. Expediency Council. Similar to Mousavi he is considered a leading green movement figure and has been under house arrest since February 2011. : A hardline cleric and chairman of the Guardian Nasrin Soutoudeh: Prominent lawyer who represented Council, which approves all legisla- activists arrested during the 2009 election protests. Ar- tion and vets political candidates. rested in September 2010 she was sentenced in Janu- Jannati has promoted loyalty to the ary 2011 to 11 years in prison. Numerous supreme leader as a central qualifi- organizations have continued to call for her release. cation for running for office. : Lawyer and Nobel : Iran’s foreign Peace Prize-winning human rights minister since January 2011 and activist. Ebadi has lived in exile since previously the head of the Atomic traveling abroad during Iran’s 2009 Energy Organization of Iran. From elections. 1997 to 2005 Salehi was the Iranian representative to the International All photos: The Associated Press Atomic Energy Agency.

Fereydoon Abbasi: The head of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran, the government body that oversees Iran’s nuclear industry. Abbasi is also serving as one of President Ahma- dinejad’s vice presidents.

2 Center for American Progress | A Who’s Who of Iran