Iran's hard-line parliament speaker emerges as the theocracy's top figure in the presidential vote
Iran’s hard-line parliament speaker has registered for the country’s June 28 presidential election
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Iran's hard-line parliament speaker emerged on Monday as the most-prominent candidate from within the country's Shiite theocracy in the race for the June 28 presidential election to replace the late Ebrahim Raisi, killed in a helicopter crash last month.
The entry of Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf, a former Tehran mayor with close ties to the country’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard, catapulted him to the front of the bevy of candidates, just a day after hard-line former President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad also registered his bid for the presidency.
Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei gave a speech earlier Monday, alluding to qualities that Qalibaf himself has highlighted and potentially signaling his support for the speaker.
However, many know Qalibaf who as a former Revolutionary Guard general was part of a violent crackdown on Iranian university students in 1999. He also reportedly ordered live gunfire to be used against students in 2003, while serving as the country’s police chief.
