Ali Larijani

Ali Larijani
Speaker of the Parliament of Iran
Assumed office
5 June 2008[1]
Acting: 28 May–4 June 2008[2]
28–31 May 2012
29–30 May 2016
Deputy Mohammad-Reza Bahonar
Hassan Aboutorabi
Masoud Pezeshkian
Preceded by Gholam-Ali Haddad-Adel
Member of the Parliament of Iran
Assumed office
28 May 2008
Serving with Mojtaba Zonnour and Ahmad Amirabadi
Constituency Qom
Majority 162,040 (34.91%)
Secretary of Supreme National Security Council
In office
15 August 2005  20 October 2007
President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad
Preceded by Hassan Rouhani
Succeeded by Saeed Jalili
Chief Negotiator of Iran for Nuclear Issue
In office
16 August 2005  20 October 2007
President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad
Deputy Javad Vaidi
Preceded by Hassan Rouhani
Succeeded by Saeed Jalili
Head of Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting
In office
21 July 1994  21 July 2004
Preceded by Mohammad Hashemi
Succeeded by Ezzatollah Zarghami
Minister of Culture and Islamic Guidance
In office
12 September 1992  28 August 1994
President Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani
Preceded by Mohammad Khatami
Succeeded by Mostafa Mir-Salim
Personal details
Born Ali Ardashir Larijani
(1957-06-03) 3 June 1957
Najaf, Iraq
Nationality Iranian
Political party Followers of Wilayat
Other political
affiliations
Principlists Pervasive Coalition (2008)
United Front of Principlists (2008, 2012)
List of Hope (2016)
Parents Mirza Hashem Amoli (father)[3]
Relatives
Alma mater Sharif University of Technology
University of Tehran
Religion Islam
Signature
Website larijani.ir
Military service
Allegiance  Iran
Service/branch Revolutionary Guards
Years of service 1982–1992
Battles/wars Iran–Iraq War

Ali Larijani (Persian: علی لاریجانی, Persian pronunciation: [æliː-e lɒːɾiːdʒɒːniː]; born 3 June 1957) is an Iranian philosopher, politician and the current chairman of the Parliament of Iran.[4] Larijani was the Secretary of the Supreme National Security Council from 15 August 2005 to 20 October 2007, appointed to the position by President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad,[5] replacing Hassan Rouhani. Acceptance of Larijani's resignation from the secretary position was announced on 20 October 2007 by Gholamhossein Elham, the Iranian government's spokesman, mentioning that his previous resignations were turned down by President Ahmadinejad.[6]

Larijani was one of the two representatives of the Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei to the council, the other being Hassan Rouhani.[7] In his post as secretary he effectively functioned as the top negotiator on issues of national security, including Iran's nuclear program.

Early life

Ali Larijani was born on 3 June 1957 in Najaf, Iraq to Iranian parents.[8][9] He hails from a religious family based in Behshahr in the province of Mazandaran.[10] His father is a leading cleric, Ayatollah Mirza Hashem Amoli.[7] His parents moved to Najaf in 1931 due to pressure of then ruler Reza Shah, but returned to Iran in 1961.[10]

Education

Larijani is a graduate of the Haqqani school in Qom.[11] He also holds a bachelor of science degree in computer science and mathematics from Sharif University of Technology and holds a master's degree and Ph.D. in Western philosophy from Tehran University.[10] Initially, he wanted to continue his graduate studies in computer science, but changed his subject after consultation with Morteza Motahhari. Larijani has published books on Immanuel Kant, Saul Kripke, and David Lewis.

Career

Larijani is a former commander of the Revolutionary Guards.[7] From 1981 to 1989, Larijani served as the deputy minister of labour and social affairs in the government led by Mir-Hossein Mousavi. Following the election of Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani as President of Iran, he was appointed deputy minister of information and communications technology. After Mohammad Khatami's resignation as minister of culture and Islamic guidance, he was appointed as acting minister and then, was confirmed by Parliament on 1 October 1992. In March 1994, he was appointed as head of the Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting, replacing Mohammad Hashemi Rafsanjani in the post.[12][13] He was in office until 21 July 2004 and was succeeded by Ezzatollah Zarghami after serving ten years in the post. He became security adviser to Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in August 2004.

Larijani was a presidential candidate for the 2005 presidential elections, where he ranked sixth, winning 5.94% of the votes. He was considered the most important presidential candidate of the conservative alliance for the 2005 presidential elections. He was supported by the Islamic Society of Engineers (ISE), among other conservative groups. He had been announced as the final choice of the conservative Council for Coordination of the Forces of the Revolution, which was made from representatives of some influential conservative parties and organizations. But he proved to be the least popular of the three conservative candidates, the others being Mahmoud Ahmadinejad (second rank in the first round, winner in the second round) and Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf (fourth rank in the first round).

In 2005, Larijani was appointed secretary of the Supreme National Security Council, a body which helps draw up nuclear and other policies, by Khamenei.[14] He replaced Hassan Rouhani in the post.[15] Larijani took a tough line on the nuclear file before his appointment as negotiator. He said that if Iran took incentives that were being offered by the European Union at the time in return for Iran giving up its nuclear fuel cycle, it would be like exchanging “a pearl for a candy bar.” As chief nuclear negotiator, Iranian analysts said he differed with the president over how to pursue negotiations with his European counterparts and say he backed a more pragmatic approach.

As Iran's top nuclear envoy Larijani said on 25 April 2007 that he expected "new ideas" from senior EU official Javier Solana at talks on resolving the deadlock between Tehran's refusal to freeze its nuclear programme and United Nations Security Council demands that it do so.[16]

In the March 2008 parliamentary election, Larijani won a seat from Qom. He said that he was willing to work with Ahmadinejad; according to Larijani, he did not disagree with Ahmadinejad on ideological issues and they had only "differences in style". In May 2008, Larijani became speaker of the parliament. He was reelected in next years as chairman of the parliament. He was re-elected in 2012 elections as the Qom district's high receiving candidate. He was also elected for another term as chairman of the parliament on 5 June 2012 and was sworn in on 11 June 2012.

Larijani implied on 21 June 2009 that authorities took the side of one candidate, without clarifying which candidate.[17]

Just after the election, Larijani reportedly congratulated presidential candidate Mir Hossein Mousavi as he, having "access to firsthand and classified information and news", believed Mousavi had won the election.[18] However, on 22 October 2012, during a QA meeting with the students of Iran University of Science and Technology, Larijani denied the allegations that he had congratulated Mousavi.[19] He was elected as speaker in the new Majlis in May 2016.[20]

Electoral history

Year Election Votes % Rank Notes
2005President1,713,8105.836th Lost
2008Parliament239,436 73.011st Won
2012ParliamentIncrease 270,382Decrease 65.171st Won
2016ParliamentDecrease 191,329Decrease 40.312nd Won

Public image

According to a poll conducted in March 2016 by Information and Public Opinion Solutions LLC (iPOS) among Iranian citizens, Larijani has 45% approval and 34% disapproval ratings and thus a +11% net popularity; while 11% of responders don't know him.[21]

Personal life

Larijani is a brother of Sadegh Larijani (President of the Judicature), Mohammad-Javad Larijani, Bagher Larijani (Chancellor of Tehran University of Medical Sciences), and Fazel Larijani (Iran's former cultural attachée in Ottawa).[10][22] Larijani is also a cousin of Ahmad Tavakkoli (Larijani's and Tavakkoli's mothers are sisters).[10]

Larijani is the son-in-law of Ayatollah Morteza Motahhari,[10][23] having married his daughter Farideh. They have two daughters, Fatemeh (born 1980) and Sarah (born 1983) and two sons, Morteza (born 1984) and Mohammad Reza (born 1989).

References

  1. "علی لاریجانی رئیس مجلس ایران شد". BBC Persian. 5 June 2008. Retrieved 20 May 2016.
  2. "علی لاریجانی رئیس موقت مجلس نهم ایران شد". BBC Persian. 28 May 2008. Retrieved 20 May 2016.
  3. 1 2 3 4 Marsha B. Cohen (May 2013). "The Brothers Larijani: A sphere of power". Al Jazeera. Retrieved 21 September 2016.
  4. Orla Ryan, "Ahmadinejad rival elected as Iranian speaker", The Guardian, 28 May 2008]
  5. انتصاب دكتر لاريجاني به عنوان دبير شورايعالي عالي امنيت ملي از سوي رييس جمهور. ISNA (in Persian). Iranians Students News Agency. 15 August 2005. Retrieved 21 October 2007.
  6. "Iran's Top Nuclear Negotiator Ali Amoli Larijani Resigns". Fox News. AP. 20 October 2007. Retrieved 17 June 2013.
  7. 1 2 3 Frederic Wehrey; Jerrold D. Green; Brian Nichiporuk; Alireza Nader; Lydia Hansell; Rasool Nafisi; S. R. Bohandy (2009). "The Rise of the Pasdaran" (PDF). RAND Corporation. Retrieved 20 August 2013.
  8. "Ali Larijani – Biography and facts". Whoislog. Retrieved 17 June 2013.
  9. Profile: Ali Larijani Tabnak
  10. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Sahimi, Mohammad (20 August 2009). "Nepotism & the Larijani Dynasty". PBS. Los Angeles. Retrieved 11 February 2013.
  11. Shmuel Bar; Shmuel Bacher; Rachel Machtiger (January 2008). "Iranian nuclear decision making under Ahmedinejad" (PDF). Lauder School of Government. Retrieved 29 August 2013.
  12. Feuilherade, Peter (1 April 1994). "Iran: media and the message". The Middle East. Retrieved 19 June 2013.
  13. Sahimi, Mohammad (14 March 2011). "Rafsanjani's Exit from Power: What Next?". PBS. Retrieved 16 August 2013.
  14. Kazemzadeh, Masoud (2007). "Ahmadinejad's Foreign Policy". Comparative Studies of South Asia, Africa and the Middle East. 27 (2): 423–449. doi:10.1215/1089201x-2007-015. Retrieved 12 February 2013.
  15. Posch, Walter (November 2007). "Only personal? The Larijani Crisis Revisited" (PDF). Policy Brief (3). Retrieved 17 June 2013.
  16. "Iran's Top Envoy Says He Expects 'New Ideas' From EU Official on Nuclear Issue". FoxNews. Associated Press. 25 April 2007. Retrieved 21 October 2007.
  17. CNN report: "Although the Guardian Council is made up of religious individuals, I wish certain members would not side with a certain presidential candidate," Larijani told the Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting (IRIB) without naming whom he meant.
  18. "IRAN: Well-informed Larijani congratulated Mousavi on election day, report says". Los Angeles Times. 11 August 2009.
  19. لاریجانی: گردنکشی مقابل رهبری عزت نیست. BBC (in Persian). 23 October 2012.
  20. "Larijani elected interim parliament speaker". 29 May 2016.
  21. "ظریف محبوب‌ترین چهره سیاسی ایران". Information and Public Opinion Solutions LLC (in Persian). 24 May 2016. Retrieved 24 May 2016.
  22. Erdbrink, Thomas (5 February 2013). "High-Level Feud Bares Tensions in Iran". The New York Times.
  23. Sohrabi, Naghmeh (July 2011). "The Power Struggle in Iran: A Centrist Comeback?" (PDF). Middle East Brief (53).

External links

Media offices
Preceded by
Mohammad Hashemi Rafsanjani
Director-general of IRIB
1994–2004
Succeeded by
Ezzatollah Zarghami
Political offices
Preceded by
Mohammad Khatami
Minister of Culture and Islamic Guidance
1992–1994
Succeeded by
Mostafa Mir-Salim
Preceded by
Hassan Rouhani
Secretary of Supreme National Security Council
2005–2007
Succeeded by
Saeed Jalili
Preceded by
Gholam Ali Haddad-Adel
Speaker of Parliament of Iran
2008–present
Succeeded by
Incumbent
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