Ayatollah Seyed Ali Hosseini Khamenei is an Iranian politician, President of Iran (1981 – 1989), Supreme Leader of Iran (1989 – present).
Place of Birth, Education
He was born on July 17, 1939 in the Iranian city of Mashhad. He grew up in a large family and was the second of 8 children. Belongs to the Seyids – the family of descendants of the Prophet Muhammad.
The father of the future supreme leader was Ayatollah Sayyed Javad Hosseini Khamenei. The latter taught in a madrasah, and later became part of the city ulema of Mashhad. His mother came from Yazd and was the daughter of Hojjat-ol-Islam.
He received his primary education at the Mashhad Shiite Theological Academy (Hawza).
In 1957, he moved to a theological school in Najaf, and from 1958 he continued his studies in Qom. There he studied theology for several years – until 1964.
It was in Qom that he met Ayatollah Hossein Boroujerdi, as well as the future Supreme Leader of Iran Ruhollah Khomeini. The latter’s radical views had a strong influence on the Khamanei.
Career
During the reign of Shah Mohammad Reza, Khamenei was a representative of the Islamic opposition. His activities were closely associated with Ayatollah Khomeini. During the Islamic Revolution, he became a member of the revolutionary council.
From 1981 to 1989, he served as President of Iran. After that, the Council of Experts elected him as the supreme leader of the country.
Khamenei is considered one of the key figures who had a decisive influence on the formation and development of the Islamic Republic of Iran.
During Khamenei’s tenure as Supreme Leader, Iran was headed by a number of presidents:
- from 1989 to 1997, the position was held by Ali Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani;
- until 2005, Mohammad Khatami was the president;
- from 2005 to 2013, the country was led by Mahmoud Ahmadinejad;
- in 2013 – 2021, Hassan Rouhani was president;
- x 2021 and until 2024 was held by Ibrahim Raisi.
After Barack Obama’s victory in the presidential elections of the United States of America (USA) in 2008 and his re-election in 2012, as well as after the election of Hassan Rouhani as president of Iran in 2013, a stage of warming in foreign policy began for the country. In the summer of 2015, Tehran and five members of the UN Security Council signed an agreement on the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action on the Iranian nuclear program. After the signing of the document and the fulfillment of its initial conditions, part of the international restrictions were lifted from Iran. As a result, the country gained access to more than $100 billion in assets that were previously frozen due to sanctions. In addition, 9 Iranian banks were connected to SWIFT.
At the beginning of 2016, President of the People’s Republic of China (PRC) Xi Jinping arrived in Iran on an official visit. As a result of the negotiations, the parties signed a number of agreements aimed at increasing bilateral trade to $600 billion over 10 years. During the same period, Khamenei publicly stated that he had never trusted Western countries. In particular, he stressed that Iran will continue to rely on cooperation with “independent and reliable” states, in particular with China.
On January 7, 2020, Iranian air defense (air defense) shot down a Ukraine International Airlines (“UIA”) passenger plane during takeoff from Tehran airport. After receiving the military’s report, Khamenei convened an urgent meeting of the Supreme National Security Council. On the same day, mass protests began in Tehran demanding Khamenei’s resignation. During the protests, clashes broke out between demonstrators and law enforcement officers. The latter used stun grenades and tear gas for dispersal.
In February 2024, Khamenei’s social media accounts Facebook and Instagram were deleted by Meta.
Marital Status
Since 1964, Khamanei has been married to Hojasta Khamenei. The couple has four sons: Mojtab, Mustafa, Massoud, Masyama, as well as two daughters – Boshra and Hoda.
