Supreme Leader of Iran
The supreme leader of Iran (Persian: رهبر معظم ایران, romanized: Rahbar-e Moazam-e Irân ()), also referred to as Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution[2] (رهبر معظم انقلاب اسلامی, Rahbar-e Moazam-e Enqelâb-e Eslâmi), but officially called the Supreme Leadership Authority (مقام معظم رهبری, Maqâm Moazam Rahbari), is the head of state and the highest political and religious authority of the Islamic Republic of Iran (above the President). The armed forces, judiciary, state radio and television, and other key government organizations such as the Guardian Council and Expediency Discernment Council are subject to the Supreme Leader.[3][4] According to the constitution, the Supreme Leader delineates the general policies of the Islamic Republic (article 110), supervising the legislature, the judiciary, and the executive branches (article 57).[5] The current lifetime officeholder, Seyyed Ali Hosseini Khameneh known as Ali Khamenei, has issued decrees and made the final decisions on the economy, the environment, foreign policy, education, national planning, and other aspects of governance in Iran.[6][7][8][9][10][11][12][13] Khamenei also makes the final decisions on the amount of transparency in elections,[14] and has dismissed and reinstated presidential cabinet appointees.[15] The Supreme Leader is legally considered "inviolable", with Iranians being routinely punished for questioning or insulting him.[16][17][18][19][20]
"Rahbar" redirects here. For other uses, see Rahbar (disambiguation).
Supreme Leader of the
Islamic Republic of Iran
The office was established by the Constitution of Iran in 1979, pursuant to Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini's concept of the Guardianship of the Islamic Jurist,[21] and is a lifetime appointment.[22] Originally the constitution required the Supreme Leader to be Marja'-e taqlid, the highest-ranking cleric in the religious laws of Usuli Twelver Shia Islam. In 1989, however, the constitution was amended and simply asked for Islamic "scholarship" to allow the Supreme Leader to be a lower-ranking cleric.[23][24] As the Guardian Jurist (Vali-ye faqih), the Supreme Leader guides the country, protecting it from heresy and imperialist predations, and ensuring the laws of Islam are followed. The style "Supreme Leader" (Persian: رهبر معظم, romanized: rahbar-e mo'azzam) is commonly used as a sign of respect although the Constitution designates them simply as "Leader" (رهبر, rahbar). According to the constitution (Article 111), the Assembly of Experts is tasked with electing (following Ayatollah Khomeini), supervising, and dismissing the Supreme Leader. In practice, the Assembly has never been known to challenge or otherwise publicly oversee any of the Supreme Leader's decisions[25] (all of its meetings and notes are strictly confidential).[26] Members of the Assembly are chosen by bodies (the Guardian Council) whose members are appointed by the Supreme Leader or appointed by an individual (Chief Justice of Iran) appointed by the Supreme Leader.
In its history, the Islamic Republic of Iran has had only two Supreme Leaders: Khomeini, who held the position from 1979 until his death in 1989 and Ali Khamenei, who has held the position for more than 30 years since Khomeini's death.
The Supreme Leader of Iran is elected by the Assembly of Experts (مجلس خبرگان, Majles-e Khobregan), which is also the only government body in charge of choosing and dismissing Supreme Leaders of Iran.[27]
The Supreme Leader is the commander-in-chief of the armed forces and the provisional head of the three branches of the state (the Judiciary, the Legislature, and the Executive).
He oversees, appoints (or inaugurates) and can dismiss the following offices:
Iran's regional policy is directly controlled by the office of the Supreme Leader with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs' task limited to protocol and ceremonial occasions. All of Iran's ambassadors to Arab countries, for example, are chosen by the Quds Force, which directly reports to the Supreme Leader.[13]
According to the constitution, all Supreme Leaders (following Ayatollah Khomeini) are to be elected by the Assembly of Experts who are elected by Iranian voters to eight year terms.
However, all candidates for membership at the Assembly of Experts (along with candidates for president and for the Majlis (parliament)) must have their candidacy approved by the Guardian Council (in 2016, 166 candidates were approved by the Guardians out of 801 who applied to run for the office),[34] whose members in turn, are half appointed unilaterally by the Supreme Leader and half subject to confirmation by the Majlis after being appointed by the head of the Iranian judiciary (Chief Justice of Iran), who is himself appointed by the Supreme Leader.[35] The Assembly has never questioned the Supreme Leader.[25] There have been cases where the Guardian Council repealed its ban on particular people after being directed to do so by Khamenei.[36] The Supreme Leader is legally considered "inviolable", with Iranians being routinely punished for questioning or insulting him.[16][17][18][19]
Incorporation in the Constitution[edit]
1979[edit]
In March 1979, shortly after Ruhollah Khomeini's return from exile and the overthrow of Iran's monarchy, a national referendum was held throughout Iran with the question "Islamic Republic, yes or no?".[37] Although some groups objected to the wording and choice and boycotted the referendum, 98% of those voting voted "yes".[37] Following this landslide victory, the constitution of Iran of 1906 was declared invalid and a new constitution for an Islamic state was created and ratified by referendum during the first week of December in 1979. According to Francis Fukuyama, the 1979 constitution is a "hybrid" of "theocratic and democratic elements" with much of it based on the ideas Khomeini presented in his published book Islamic Government: Governance of the Jurist (Hukumat-e Islami).[38] In the work, Khomeini argued that government must be run in accordance with traditional Islamic sharia, and for this to happen a leading Islamic jurist (faqih) must provide political "guardianship" (wilayat or velayat) over the people. The leading jurist were known as Marja'.
The Constitution stresses the importance of the clergy in government, with Article 4 stating that
The role of the Iranian Vice Supreme Leader (Deputy Supreme Leader) was eventually incorporated into the authority of the Supreme Leader.
During the presidency of Hassan Rouhani and amid longstanding rumors of Khamenei's declining health, it was recommended to Khamenei to reestablish the office of deputy supreme leader to better facilitate the transition towards new leadership.[60]