Project on Middle East Democracy

Project on Middle East Democracy
The POMED Wire


Who Will Succeed Khamenei?

July 30th, 2009 by Max

Rumors persist regarding the health of Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Khamenei, Babak Sarfaraz writes in The Nation.  Khamenei, who Sarfaraz reports may be suffering from terminal leukemia, tapped Ayatollah Mahmoud Hashemi Shahroudi to be chief of the Judiciary back in 1999 and now, Sarfaraz posits, Shahroudi is well positioned to take the helm.

Although the succession issue is not being openly discussed, particularly at such a critical period for the Islamic Republic, there are indications that an Iran under Shahroudi, while deeply traditionalist, might not be the same Iran envisioned by current president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.  The Judiciary under Shahroudi has clashed several times with Ahmadinejad’s government, criticizing its use of state assets and cronyism.


Posted in Iran, Judiciary |

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