Heydar Moslehi (born 1957 in

Isfahan Isfahan ( fa, اصفهان, Esfahân ), from its Achaemenid empire, ancient designation ''Aspadana'' and, later, ''Spahan'' in Sassanian Empire, middle Persian, rendered in English as ''Ispahan'', is a major city in the Greater Isfahan Regio ...

) is an Iranian cleric and politician who served as the minister of intelligence from 2009 to 2013.

Early life and education

Moslehi was born in

Shahreza Shahreza ( fa, شهرضا, also Romanized as Shahrezā and Shahriza; formerly Komsheh, then Qomsheh (Persian: ), also Romanized as Kowmsheh, and Qowmsheh) is a city and capital of Shahreza County, Isfahan Province, Iran. At the 2006 census, its ...

in the Isfahan province, Iran, in 1957. He was a student of

Haghani Circle Haghani school (also Haqqani) is a Shi'i school of thought in Iran based in the holy city of Qom and formerly headed by Ayatollah Mohammad Taghi Mesbah Yazdi, an influential theologian. The Haghani Circle has its origin in the Haghani seminary, fo ...

and received a master's degree in

International law International law (also known as public international law and the law of nations) is the set of rules, norms, and standards generally recognized as binding between states. It establishes normative guidelines and a common conceptual framework for ...

after studying abroad for several years.

Career

Before

Mahmoud Ahmadinejad Mahmoud Ahmadinejad ( fa, محمود احمدی‌نژاد, Mahmūd Ahmadīnežād ), born Mahmoud Sabbaghian ( fa, محمود صباغیان, Mahmoud Sabbāghyān, 28 October 1956),

was elected president in 2005, Moslehi served as the representative of Ayatollah Khamenei to the

Basij The Basij ( fa, بسيج, lit. "The Mobilization"), Niru-ye Moghāvemat-e Basij ( fa, نیروی مقاومت بسیج, "Resistance Mobilization Force"), full name Sâzmân-e Basij-e Mostaz'afin ( fa, سازمان بسیج مستضعفین, "The ...

. Then new president Ahmadinejad appointed him as his adviser for clerical affairs. He was later appointed by Khamenei to be the head of the Organization for Islamic Endowments. Moslehi was originally appointed minister of intelligence on 5 August 2009. However, he resigned from his position on 17 April 2011 after being asked to resign by Ahmedinejad. ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'' reported on speculation that Moslehi's resignation was prompted by a dispute with

Esfandiar Rahim Mashaei Esfandiar Rahim Mashaei ( fa, اسفندیار رحیم‌مشایی; born 16 November 1960) is an Iranian conservative politician and former intelligence officer. As a senior Cabinet member in the administration of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, ...

, after Moslehi tried to dismiss an intelligence official. Moslehi was reinstated in his position by the supreme leader of Iran,

Ali Khamenei Sayyid Ali Hosseini Khamenei ( fa, سید علی حسینی خامنه‌ای, ; born 19 April 1939) is a Twelver Shia ''marja and the second and current Supreme Leader of Iran, in office since 1989. He was previously the third president o ...

. Ahmadinejad decided to not hold cabinet meetings in protest of Moslehi's presence. As of April 2011, cabinet meetings were being held without Ahmadinejad, with the vice president of Iran,

Mohammad-Reza Rahimi Mohammad Reza Rahimi ( fa, محمدرضا رحيمی, born on 11 January 1949) is an Iranian politician who served as the fifth first vice president from 13 September 2009 until 3 August 2013. His previous posts included governor of the Kurdi ...

, chairing the meetings. On 27 April, the parliament endorsed Moslehi in his position as minister of intelligence. Moslehi was sanctioned by both

the United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

(on 29 September 2010) and

European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational political and economic union of member states that are located primarily in Europe. The union has a total area of and an estimated total population of about 447million. The EU has often been des ...

(in October 2011). The US sanctioned him due to his alleged connections in human rights abuses in the Evin prison. The reason for the EU sanctions is his orders of the arbitrary detentions and persecution of opposition figures in the country.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Moslehi, Heydar 21st-century Iranian politicians 1957 births Living people Shia Islamists Iranian Shia clerics Ministers of Intelligence of Iran Coalition of the Pleasant Scent of Servitude politicians Islamic Revolution Committees personnel Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps clerics Iranian individuals subject to the U.S. Department of the Treasury sanctions