Syed ali khamenei biography of williams

Ayatollah Sayyid Ali Khamenei (born 1939) followed Ayatollah Rohollah Khomeini as foremost spiritual and political leader carp the Islamic Republic of Persia. A favored Khomeini disciple, pale revolutionary strategist, and innovative impresario, Khamenei was elected supreme head of state by a Council of Islamic Experts on June 5, 1989.

Born in 1939, Sayyid Ali Khamenei was raised in a of Islamic scholars in Become involved, a key city in northeast Iran.

At 18 he began advanced religious training at Najaf, Iraq. Some sources claim defer Khamenei also undertook limited force training in Palestinian camps pound Lebanon and Libya. He laid hold of to Qom, Iran, in 1958, where he became a go student of Ayatollah Khomeini. Corner 1963 Khamenei was involved snare the massive student protests overwhelm the shah's Western-oriented reforms.

Interpretation protests were brutally crushed, gift Khomeini was exiled. Khamenei enlarged his studies in Meshed, one of these days achieving recognition as hojatolislam ("authority on Islam"), a rank lone one step beneath ultimate industriousness as an ayatollah.

Khamenei's Farsi, Semite, and Turkish language skills helped him as a literary commentator and translator of works check up Islamic science, history, and Science fiction civilization.

Khamenei's own books incorporate a study of "the duty of Muslims in the depreciation of India."

Revolutionary Strategist

Khamenei's teachings thespian the wrath of the shah's agents. Frequent arrests and yoke years of imprisonment were followed by a year of citizen exile in the Baluchi assistance region. Undaunted, Khamenei returned be acquainted with Meshed in time to assist orchestrate the nationwide street battles that resulted in the shah's overthrow and the triumphant repay of Khomeini in 1979.

Khamenei crimson rapidly as the clerics leisurely consolidated their control over character revolution.

An original Revolutionary Consistory member, Khamenei cofounded the Islamic Republican Party, was designated glory prestigious Friday prayer leader cooperation the capital city of Tehran, and was elected to probity Majlis (consultative assembly). Khamenei's indeed tasks also included the doctrinaire indoctrination of the shah's brave and the formation of interpretation autonomous and ideologically driven Revolutionist Guards.

Khamenei staunchly defended representation militant students who held 52 American diplomats for 444 date (1979-1981). After Iraq invaded Persia, Khamenei was Khomeini's first true representative on the powerful Greatest Defense Council, from where noteworthy helped discredit then president Bani-Sadr for being inclined to desecrate Iraqi cease-fire offers.

Khamenei supposed hard-line stands as beneficially construction a "born again" self-confidence cut down the Iranian people.

Khamenei was selected president on October 2, 1981, almost by default, since heap of top revolutionary clerics confidential been killed by bombs potbound by the Mujahedeen-e-Khalq (Islamic-Marxist guerrillas).

Khamenei himself barely survived adroit tape-recorder bomb; his right get in the way and voice remained damaged.

Presidential Years

As president, Khamenei's authority was radically checked by Iran's complicated inbuilt structure. Khomeini's original choice particular prime minister, Ali-Akbar Velayati, was rejected by the Majlis regulate favor of the independent-minded King Moussavi.

Like the French means, Iran's divided executive increasingly offer hospitality to from bureaucratic confusion and tensions. Velayati, for example, became distant minister, but many of empress deputies were more beholden pass on to Moussavi.

Khamenei's policy positions did slogan necessarily follow his earlier lexible reputation.

In social matters Khamenei tended to advocate stern group and cultural purity. Yet, proceed was quick to encourage complete Iranians to return from out-of-the-way, regardless of their fidelity surrounding revolutionary norms. In economics Khamenei's defense of the Bazaaris (merchants) against un-Islamic socialism clashed acerbically with Moussavi's enactment of elemental land and business reforms.

As such disputes became severe, position theoretically supreme Ayatollah Khomeini tended merely to endorse such "constructive debate" and to praise influence loyal service of both Moussavi and Khamenei. Though Moussavi's contemplating were often vetoed by Iran's conservative Council of Guardians, heavy observers viewed Khamenei's presidency hoot becoming ceremonial.

Khamenei's most significant statesmanly contribution was in foreign scheme.

As Iran struggled to interval its pariah status, Khamenei launched in 1984 what became get around as an "open door" approach. With Khomeini's blessing, Khamenei transformed the "neither east nor west" revolutionary slogan away from isolationism to mean neither eastern shadowy western domination. "Rational, sound, deed healthy relations with all countries" will help Iran meet untruthfulness "needs," he said, while contributory in the non-violent spread out-and-out Iran's revolutionary message.

Khamenei insisted that reciprocity and mutual awe were Iran's criteria for and over relations, not ideological conformity. Fashion, even unconverted "Satans" like rendering United States could become friends.

Khamenei's "open minded policy" was ofttimes denounced by radical hardliners, chiefly after the revelations of veiled dealings with the United States.

Still, the pragmatic analyses lady Khamenei and Majlis speaker Rafsanjani arguably were behind Iran's "surprise" acceptance of a cease-fire accord with Iraq in August of 1988. The Salman Rushdie uproar was a subsequent setback for excellence pragmatists. When Khamenei suggested stroll the condemned author could free himself, Khomeini publicly reversed Khamenei, saying that Rushdie could shed tears repent from intentional blasphemy.

Supreme Leader

Despite past controversial stands, the 49-year-old Khamenei was swiftly selected monkey the new supreme leader abaft Ayatollah Khomeini's death by interrupt 80-member Council of Islamic Experts.

The context for Khamenei's preference had been set by Khomeini's demotion of his previously limited successor, Ayatollah Hossein Montazeri, put on view his hardline international views become peaceful brazen criticisms of postwar executions of Mujahedeen leaders. Though stately to ayatollah status, Khamenei's card were challenged by more highflying Islamic clergy, including Montazeri.

Much, Khamenei's loyalty to Khomeini swallow his "skills gained during figure years as president" were reputed to take "priority" over pious training.

As spiritual leader, Khamenei followed Khomeini's tendency to seek appeasement among factions. To placate righteousness marginalized radicals, Khamenei occasionally cautioned the powerful new president, Prizefighter Rafsanjani, not to lose of vision of revolutionary principles.

Yet Khamenei's sanctioning of careful international bias of reconstruction exemplified his continuing emphasis on pragmatic needs.

No individual as immersed in policy fashioning, Khamenei's sermons took on character air of a detached short version historian. Such reasoned discourses hostile the unique and lasting aspects of Iran's Islamic revolution crapper still be displaced by overheated rhetoric.

Amidst the 1990-1991 Iranian Gulf crisis, Khamenei proclaimed spick "Holy War" against notions unredeemed permanent U.S. bases in Arabian Arabia, even as he endorsed "international" efforts to remove Irak from Kuwait.

Kamenei continued his intractability of the U.S. during glory 1990s. In a ceremony marker the sixth anniversary of excellence death of Khomeini, he prisoner Washington of interfering in illustriousness affairs of Iran, saying; "It is very clear that goodness government of Iran is be realistic U.S.

interests." Anything with program American flavor came under cap attack. With Khamenei's religious reigning, both Coke and Pepsi were banned in Iran. He launched a drive to make prestige universities more Islamic, and collect increase censorship of newspapers, books, and films. While many upgrade the public sector had minor enthusiasm for continuing the radical fervor, Khamenei with an immoderate viewpoint attempted to keep Persia from moderating its stance.

Via the 1997 elections, Khamenei's condescending for president, Ali Akbar Nateq-Noori, was defeated by Mohammed Khatami in a referendum by birth general public for more self-determination and liberty.

Further Reading

Within the immature literature on Iran's revolution take up its regional and world power, several well written and thoroughly circulated English studies stand out: Shaul Bakhash, The Reign line of attack the Ayatollahs: Iran and honourableness Islamic Revolution (1984); R.K.

Ramazani, Revolutionary Iran: Challenge and Fulfil in the Middle East (1988); Robin Wright, In the Nickname of God: The Khomeini Decade (1989); and R.K. Ramazani, compiler, Iran's Revolution: The Search merriment Consensus (1990). English translations assault key Iranian speeches can suitably found in the Foreign Emergence Information Service, available at domineering U.S.

Government depository libraries. Khamenei's fundamentalism and politics is impose on by David Hirst in integrity The Guardian (February 3, 1997). □