Word: ayatullah
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...approach will yield results against a government willing to deploy overwhelming force to maintain its grip on power. Over the weekend, in fact, opposition activists were dismayed to hear reports that former President Ali Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani had called for unity and for all Iranians to follow Supreme Leader Ayatullah Ali Khamenei's orders to end the turmoil. Coming a little over a month after the influential cleric and Ahmadinejad rival had openly questioned June's disputed election results, the comments suggested that the opposition movement could be losing one of its most crucial establishment backers...
Still, the newfound role of renegade seems to suit Karroubi, the 72-year-old cleric who once enjoyed impeccable credentials within the Islamic Republic. Indeed, Karroubi is a battle-hardened revolutionary, having served time in prison during the Shah's reign, studied under Ayatullah Khomeini and served as speaker of parliament until 2004. In 2005, he placed third in the first round of presidential elections, losing out to then mayor of Tehran Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, in a race that Karroubi later alleged was rigged. After his defeat in 2005, he remained on the offensive, forming a political party and newspaper...
...brothers Larijani - often referred to as the Kennedys of Iran - are emerging as a powerful counterweight to President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad from within the conservative camp. And unlike other Ahmadinejad rivals, the Larijanis are fully endorsed by Iran's Supreme Leader, Ayatullah Ali Khamenei...
...various diplomatic roles as well as posts in Cabinet ministries, the Council of Guardians, the legislature, the powerful National Security Council, the judiciary, Iran's top broadcasting authority and even the Revolutionary Guards. Over the past year, they have consolidated their power. (See pictures of the enduring influence of Ayatullah Khomeini...
...will between the Larijanis and Ahmadinejad is also rooted in a social class divide, according to Sadjadpour. The Larijani brothers are the progeny of the late Grand Ayatullah Mirza Hashem Amoli, a marja whose interpretations of Islam are considered binding by a following of devout Shi'ite Muslims. Some of his sons have also married into prominent clerical families, giving them status beyond politics. Ali Larijani represents Qum, the center of Islamic scholarship in Iran, in parliament. Ahmadinejad, by contrast, is the son of a blacksmith...