DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) 鈥� Iran鈥檚 hard-line parliament speaker registered Monday for country鈥檚 June 28 presidential election.
The entry of Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf brings a prominent candidate with close ties to the country's parliamentary Revolution Guard into the race to replace President Ebrahim Raisi, who died in a helicopter crash with seven others on May 19.
The race comes at a time of heightened tensions between Iran and the West over Tehran鈥檚 rapidly advancing nuclear program, its arming of Russia in that country's war on Ukraine and its wide-reaching crackdowns on dissent. Meanwhile, Iran鈥檚 support of militia proxy forces throughout the wider Middle East have been in increased focus as Yemen鈥檚 attack ships in the Red Sea over the Israel-Hamas war in the Gaza Strip.
Qalibaf, 62, initially became speaker following a string of failed presidential bids and 12 years as the leader of Iran鈥檚 capital city, during which he built onto Tehran鈥檚 subway and supported the construction of modern high-rises. He was recently re-elected as speaker.
Many, however, know Qalibaf for his support, as a general, for a violent crackdown on Iranian university students in 1999. He also reportedly ordered live gunfire to be used against Iranian students in 2003 while serving as the country鈥檚 police chief.
Qalibaf ran unsuccessfully for president in 2005 and 2013. He withdrew from the 2017 presidential campaign.
Iran鈥檚 parliament plays a secondary role in governing the country, though it can intensify pressure on a presidential administration when deciding on the annual budget and other important bills. Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, 85, has the final say in all important state matters.
A trained pilot, Qalibaf served in the paramilitary Guard during the country鈥檚 bloody 1980s war with Iraq. After the conflict, he served as the head of the Guard鈥檚 construction arm, Khatam al-Anbia, for several years leading efforts to rebuild
Qalibaf then served as the head of the Guard鈥檚 air force, during which in 1999 he co-signed a letter to reformist President Mohammad Khatami amid student in Tehran over the government closing of a reformist newspaper and a subsequent security force crackdown. The letter warned Khatami that the Guard would take action unilaterally unless he agreed to put down the demonstrations.
Violence around the protests saw several killed, hundreds wounded and thousands arrested.
Qalibaf then served as the head of Iran鈥檚 police, modernizing the force and implementing the country鈥檚 110 emergency phone number. However, a leaked recording of a later meeting between Qalibaf and members of the Guard鈥檚 volunteer Basij force included him claiming that he ordered gunfire be used against demonstrators in 2003, as well as praising the violence used in Iran鈥檚 .
Among those already registered are hard-line former President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, another , and , who also ran in 2021.
More candidates may yet emerge. The country鈥檚 acting president, Mohammad Mokhber, previously a behind-the-scenes bureaucrat, could be the front-runner because he has already been seen meeting with Khamenei. Also discussed as a possible aspirant is the former reformist, .
But it remains unlikely Iran's Shiite theocracy will allow Ahmadinejad or Khatami them to run. A 12-member Guardian Council, a panel of clerics and jurists ultimately overseen by Khamenei, will decide on a final candidate list. That panel has never accepted a woman or anyone calling for radical change to the country鈥檚 governance.
___
Associated Press writer Nasser Karimi in Tehran, Iran, contributed to this report.
Jon Gambrell, The Associated Press
