Mehdi Khalaji
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Mehdi Khalaji ( fa, مهدی خلجی, born 21 September 1973) is an Iranian-American writer, scholar of Islamic studies, political analyst and a former Shia cleric. He has been researching at the
Washington Institute for Near East Policy The Washington Institute for Near East Policy (WINEP or TWI, also known simply as The Washington Institute) is a pro-Israel American think tank based in Washington, D.C., focused on the foreign policy of the United States in the Near East. WIN ...
since 2005, and is now a senior research fellow focusing on the politics of Iran and Shiite groups in the
Middle East The Middle East ( ar, الشرق الأوسط, ISO 233: ) is a geopolitical region commonly encompassing Arabia (including the Arabian Peninsula and Bahrain), Asia Minor (Asian part of Turkey except Hatay Province), East Thrace (Europ ...
. He has frequently contributed to media outlets such as ''
The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...
'',
BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...
, ''
The Washington Post ''The Washington Post'' (also known as the ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'') is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area and has a large nati ...
'', and ''
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 d ...
''. Khalaji is an American citizen.


Education and career

A native from Qom, the center for Shi'a scholarship in Iran, Khalaji studied
Islamic theology Schools of Islamic theology are various Islamic schools and branches in different schools of thought regarding '' ʿaqīdah'' (creed). The main schools of Islamic Theology include the Qadariyah, Falasifa, Jahmiyya, Murji'ah, Muʿtazila, Batin ...
in
Qom Seminary The Qom Seminary () is the largest Islamic seminary (''hawza'') in Iran, established in 1922 by Grand Ayatollah Abdul-Karim Haeri Yazdi in Qom. It trains Usuli scholars. History Although big Shi'a academies existed in Qom dating back as earl ...
, and Philosophy in
Tarbiat Modarres University Tarbiat Modares University ( fa, دانشگاه تربیت مدرس:  ''Dāneshgāh-e Tarbiyat Modares'', lit. "Professor Training University") is an exclusively graduate university with its main campus in Tehran, Iran. It was founded in 1982 a ...
. From 1986 to 2000, Khalaji trained in the seminaries of Qom, the traditional center of Iran's clerical establishment. There he studied theology and jurisprudence, earning a doctorate and thoroughly researched on modern intellectual and philosophical-political developments in Iran and the wider Islamic and Western worlds. In Qom, and later in Tehran, Khalaji launched a career in journalism, first serving on the editorial board of a theological journal, ''Naqd va Nazar'', and then the daily ''
Entekhab ''Entekhab'' (Persian: انتخاب; ''Choice'') was a Persian language newspaper published in Iran between 1991 and 2004. Nevertheless, its news website is active under the name of "Entekhab" (Entekhab.ir) and has turned into one of the most hig ...
''. In addition to his own writing, he has translated the works of the Islamic humanist scholar Muhammad Arkoun and other modernist Muslim intellectuals. In 1993, Khalaji became a contributor to Kiyan monthly magazine, which at the time was the main voice of religious intellectuals in Iran. In 2000, Khalaji moved to Paris where he studied Shiite theology and exegesis in the but didn't earn any degree or certificate Ecole Pratique des Hautes Etudes. He also worked for BBC Persian as a political analyst on Iranian affairs, eventually becoming a broadcaster for the Prague-based
Radio Farda Radio Farda ( fa, راديو فردا, lit=Radio Tomorrow, ''Radio Farda'') is the Iranian branch of the U.S. government-funded Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL) external broadcast service for providing "factual, objective and profession ...
, the Persian-language service of the U.S. government's Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty. At
Radio Farda Radio Farda ( fa, راديو فردا, lit=Radio Tomorrow, ''Radio Farda'') is the Iranian branch of the U.S. government-funded Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL) external broadcast service for providing "factual, objective and profession ...
, he produced news, features, and analysis on a range of Middle Eastern, Iranian, and Islamic issues. In 2005, Mehdi Khalaji became a senior fellow at The Washington Institute, focusing on the politics of Iran and Shiite groups in the Middle East. A Shiite theologian by training, Khalaji has also served on the editorial boards of two prominent Iranian periodicals and produced for the BBC as well as the U.S. government's Persian news service. He is a frequent contributor in PolicyWatch and PeaceWatch segments submitted by the
Washington Institute for Near East Policy The Washington Institute for Near East Policy (WINEP or TWI, also known simply as The Washington Institute) is a pro-Israel American think tank based in Washington, D.C., focused on the foreign policy of the United States in the Near East. WIN ...
. He has participated in many panels including one in November 2006 when he appeared on a panel run by American Foreign Policy Council, titled
Understanding the Iranian Threat
, along with
James Woolsey Robert James Woolsey Jr. (born September 21, 1941) is an American political appointee who has served in various senior positions. He headed the Central Intelligence Agency as Director of Central Intelligence from February 5, 1993, until January 1 ...
,
Ilan Berman Ilan I. Berman (born December 23, 1975) is an American lawyer and educator. He is the Vice President of the American Foreign Policy Council, a non-profit U.S. foreign policy think tank in Washington, DC. He focuses on regional security in the M ...
, and
Patrick Clawson Patrick Lyell Clawson (born March 30, 1951) is an American economist and Middle East scholar. He is currently the Director for Research at The Washington Institute for Near East Policy and senior editor of ''Middle East Quarterly''. Biography B ...
. He is a writer and contributor for numerous English-language and Persian-language media entities. He also teaches Persian-language webinars on Quran'ic interpretation for Tavaana: E-Learning Institute for Iranian Civil Society.


Father's arrest

On January 12, 2010, Mehdi Khalaji’s father, Mohammad Taghi Khalaji, was arrested in Iran. A report from
The Washington Institute for Near East Policy The Washington Institute for Near East Policy (WINEP or TWI, also known simply as The Washington Institute) is a pro-Israel American think tank based in Washington, D.C., focused on the foreign policy of the United States in the Near East. WI ...
stated that agents of Iran's Ministry of Intelligence, conducted a violent house search, confiscating personal files, books, letters, a computer, satellite receiver and the family's passports. Mehdi Khalaji's daughter's passport was among those confiscated. Khalaji's family was banned from leaving Iran.


Views

Khalaji has written an opinion piece in ''
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 ...
'' on why he is against Iran deal.


Controversies

In March 2019 Khalaji and his wife, Marjan Sheikholeslami Aleagha, were listed among the main suspects in the largest financial corruption case in Iranian history with a total amount of 6.7 billion euros. Khalaji and his wife are suspected that they made contracts with
Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC; fa, سپاه پاسداران انقلاب اسلامی, Sepāh-e Pāsdārān-e Enghelāb-e Eslāmi, lit=Army of Guardians of the Islamic Revolution also Sepāh or Pasdaran for short) is a branch o ...
oil and gas company, Sepanir, and in order to bypass sanctions they used personal accounts which were used to embezzle money to
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 territori ...
and
Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...
.http://www.entekhab.ir/fa/news/463704/مرجان-شیخ-الاسلامی-شریک-متهم-پرونده-فساد-در-پتروشیمی-با-مبلغی-کلان-به-خارج-از-کشور-متواری-شده-جزئیاتی-تکان‌دهنده-از-پرونده-۶۶-میلیارد-یورویی-پتروشیمی-بزرگترین-کلاهبرداری-تاریخ-ایران


Publications

;Booklets
Apocalyptic Politics: On the Rationality of Iranian PoliticsThrough the Veil: The Role of Broadcasting in U.S. Public Diplomacy toward IraniansThe Last Marja: Sistani and the End of Traditional Religious Authority in Shiism
;Books *'' Natani'' (novel in Persian, published in Berlin by Nashr-e Gardoon) *''The New Order of the Clerical Establishment in Iran: Nazm-e Novin-e Rohaniat Dar Iran'' (Persian Editio
(Amazon link)


References


External links


Mehdi Khalaji Expert FellowPersonal Website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Khalaji, Mehdi Iranian translators Iranian bloggers Iranian emigrants to the United States People from Qom Tarbiat Modares University alumni 1973 births Living people Iranian Shia clerics Washington, D.C., Democrats Male bloggers 21st-century translators