Ali Khamenei, was born in Mashhad, the second most populous city in Iran, on April 19, 1939. He is an Iranian cleric and politician who currently serves as the supreme leader of Iran since 1989, head of the Islamic clerical ruling class of his country and (marŷaʿ) «source of emulation» of Twelver Shia Islam.
He previously served as the
third president of Iran between 1981 and 1989. Jamenei’s tenure as supreme leader, which has lasted more than 35 years, makes him
the longest-serving head of state in the Middle East and
the second longest-serving Iranian leader of the 20th and 21st centuries, after
Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi.
He was educated in the holy cities of
Mashhad,
Qom and
Najaf, where he studied with prominent Shia scholars. He soon adopted a political view of Islam, influenced by the revolutionary thought of Ayatollah
Ruhollah Khomeini.
Jamenei
is fluent in Persian and Arabic, as well as speaking Azeri, his father’s native language, with less fluency.
Khamenei was a fundamental figure in the Iranian Revolution (1978-1979) and, after its success, held many positions in the newly created Islamic Republic of Iran
As the supreme leader, Khamenei is the most powerful political authority in Iran. He is the head of state of Iran, the commander-in-chief of its armed forces, and can issue decrees and make final decisions on major government policies in the economy, environment, foreign policy, and national planning in Iran.
Ayatollah Ali Khamenei
has endured decades of international sanctions, almost constant regional tensions, and protest movements that he ruthlessly suppressed to maintain his iron grip on the Islamic Republic.
Family life
The
ayatollah Jamenei comes from a clerical family originally from Tafresh, settled in Tabriz, he is the second of eight siblings, two of whom are also ulemas (religious scholars who possess in-depth knowledge of Islamic law).
Ali Jamenei is married and has six children.
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Ideology and Leadership Style
Jamenei represents a conservative line, promoting
Shiite political Islam,
economic autarky, and
cultural resistance to the West. His style is discreet, methodical, and centralized. He is also a polarizing figure: seen by some as a
defender of Islamic sovereignty, and by others as a symbol of
religious authoritarianism.
Other details of his/her life
- He is a writer and translator; he has published religious works and translations of Islamic authors.
- He survived an assassination attempt in 1981, which left him with permanent damage to his right arm.
- He has maintained control of the country through alliances with the security forces, especially the Revolutionary Guard.
Current Conflict with Israel
Both the President of the United States, Donald Trump, and the Prime Minister of Israel,
Benjamin Netanyahu, have raised the possibility of attacking the all-powerful leader of Tehran, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
The supreme leader issued a strong statement on the country’s state television on the sixth day of the conflict between his country and Israel. “Any form of American military intervention will undoubtedly result in irreparable damage,” says the statement, which was read by the presenter, not by Jamenei himself.
Israel’s unprecedented attacks on nuclear, military, and infrastructure targets in Iran constitute, by far,
its most serious crisis to date, and threaten both the clerical regime that has ruled for 36 years and its own survival.
