Ali Larijani | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Larijani in 2025 | |
| Native name | علی لاریجانی |
| Allegiance | Iran |
| Branch | Revolutionary Guards |
| Service years | 1981–1993 |
| Rank | Brigadier general[1] |
| Conflicts | Iran–Iraq War |
| Secretary of Supreme National Security Council | |
| Assumed office 5 August 2025 | |
| President | Masoud Pezeshkian |
| Preceded by | Ali Akbar Ahmadian |
| In office 15 August 2005 – 20 October 2007 | |
| President | Mahmoud Ahmadinejad |
| Deputy | Abdolreza Rahmani Fazli |
| Preceded by | Hassan Rouhani |
| Succeeded by | Saeed Jalili |
| 5thSpeaker of the Islamic Consultative Assembly | |
| In office 5 June 2008 – 28 May 2020 Acting: 28 May–4 June 2008;[2] 28–31 May 2012; 29–30 May 2016[3] | |
| Deputy | Mohammad-Reza Bahonar Hassan Aboutorabi Masoud Pezeshkian |
| Preceded by | Gholam-Ali Haddad-Adel |
| Succeeded by | Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf |
| Member of theIslamic Consultative Assembly | |
| In office 28 May 2008 – 28 May 2020 | |
| Constituency | Qom |
| Majority | 270,382 (%65.17) |
| Member ofExpediency Discernment Council | |
| Assumed office 28 May 2020 | |
| Appointed by | Ali Khamenei |
| Chairman | Sadiq Larijani |
| Preceded by | Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf |
| In office 17 March 1997 – 28 May 2008 | |
| Appointed by | Ali Khamenei |
| Chairman | Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani |
| Minister of Culture and Islamic Guidance | |
| In office 11 August 1992 – 15 February 1994 Acting: 16 July–11 August 1992[4] | |
| President | Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani |
| Preceded by | Mohammad Khatami |
| Succeeded by | Mostafa Mir-Salim |
| Head of Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting | |
| In office 13 February 1994 – 23 May 2004 | |
| Appointed by | Ali Khamenei[5] |
| Preceded by | Mohammad Hashemi |
| Succeeded by | Ezzatollah Zarghami |
| In office 14 February 1981 – July 1981[6] | |
| Appointed by | Supervisory council |
| Preceded by | Ali Akbar Mohtashamipur andAbdollah Nouri(Co-caretakers) |
| Succeeded by | Mohammad Hashemi |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Ali Ardashir Larijani (1958-06-03)3 June 1958 (age 67)[citation needed] |
| Nationality | Iranian |
| Party | Islamic Coalition Party(1990s) |
| Other political affiliations | Electoral lists
Parliamentary groups
|
| Spouse | Farideh Motahhari |
| Children | Fatemeh Ardashir Larijani + 3 others |
| Parent | Mirza Hashem Amoli (father)[7] |
| Relatives |
|
| Alma mater | Aryamehr University of Technology University of Tehran |
| Signature |  |
| Website | Official website |
| Academic background | |
| Thesis | |
| Doctoral advisor | Gholam-Ali Haddad-Adel |
| Other advisor | Karim Mojtahedi |
| Influences | Immanuel Kant[8] |
| Academic work | |
| Discipline | Philosophy |
| Institutions | University of Tehran |
Ali Ardashir Larijani[a] (born 3 June 1958)[citation needed] is an Iranian politician and formermilitary officer in theIslamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, who serves asSecretary of Supreme National Security Council since 2025.[9] He served as theSpeaker of theParliament of Iran from 2008 to 2020.[10] He has been a member of theExpediency Discernment Council since 2020, having previously served from 1997 to 2008.
Larijani filed for candidacy in the2024 presidential election, but was ultimately disqualified. He previously ran in2005, but finished in 6th place, and was also disqualified from running in2021.
Larijani was the secretary of theSupreme National Security Council from 15 August 2005 to 20 October 2007, appointed to the position by PresidentMahmoud Ahmadinejad,[11] replacingHassan Rouhani. Acceptance of Larijani's resignation from the secretary position was announced on 20 October 2007 byGholam-Hossein Elham, the Iranian government's spokesman, mentioning that President Ahmadinejad turned down his previous resignations.[12]
Larijani was one of the two representatives of theSupreme Leader of the Islamic RevolutionAli Khamenei to the council, the other beingHassan Rouhani.[13] In his post as secretary, he effectively functioned as the top negotiator on issues of national security, includingIran's nuclear program. He is also currently a member ofSupreme Council of the Cultural Revolution.
On 15, January 2026, following theprotests and claims ofmassacres in Iran, the US imposed new sanctions on Larijani, for his part in repressing protestors[14][15][16]. According to a report, Larijani has been the "mastermind" in the January 2026 crackdown, leveraging his close ties to IRGC commanders and intelligence services, together with his family’s longstanding connections to senior clerics, to consolidate support across rival factions and prepare to assume leadership after Khamenei’s death.[17] In response to the EU's decision to label the IRGC as a terrorist organization, Larijani posted on X that the military forces of any countries supporting the EU's decision against the IRGC would be considered terrorist groups and would face consequences of their actions.[18][19]
Ali Larijani was born inNajaf,Iraq to IranianPersian parents. He hails from a religiousShia gentry family based inAmol inthe province of Mazandaran.[20] His father was a leading cleric,AyatollahMirza Hashem Amoli.[13] His parents moved to Najaf in 1931 due to pressure of the rulerReza Shah, but returned to Iran in 1961.[20]
Larijani is a graduate of Qom seminary.[21] He also holds aBachelor of Science degree incomputer science andmathematics fromAryamehr University of Technology and holds amaster's degree andPhD inWestern philosophy from theUniversity of Tehran.[20] Initially, he wanted to continue his graduate studies in computer science, but changed his subject after consultation withMorteza Motahhari. Larijani has published books onImmanuel Kant,Saul Kripke, andDavid Lewis. Larijani is a faculty member of the School of Literature and Humanities at the University of Tehran.[22]
Larijani is a former commander of theRevolutionary Guards.[13] Larijani served as the deputy minister of labor and social affairs. Then it was appointed deputy minister of information and communications technology.[23] In March 1994, he was appointed head of theIslamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting, replacingMohammad Hashemi Rafsanjani in the post.[24][25] He was in office until 21 July 2004 and was succeeded byEzzatollah Zarghami after serving ten years in the post. He became security adviser to Supreme LeaderAyatollah Ali Khamenei in August 2004.
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Larijani was a presidential candidate for the2005 presidential elections, where he ranked sixth, winning 5.94% of the votes. He was considered the most important presidential candidate of the conservative alliance for the 2005 presidential elections. He was supported by theIslamic Society of Engineers (ISE), among other conservative groups. He had been announced as the final choice of the conservativeCouncil for Coordination of the Forces of the Revolution, made from representatives of some influential conservative parties and organizations. However, he proved to be the least popular of the three conservative candidates, the others beingMahmoud Ahmadinejad (second rank in the first round, winner in the second round) andMohammad Bagher Ghalibaf (fourth rank in the first round).
In 2005, Larijani was appointed theSupreme National Security Council secretary. This body helps draw up nuclear and other policies by Khamenei.[26] He replacedHassan Rouhani in the post.[27] As a chief nuclear negotiator, Iranian analysts said he differed with the president over how to pursue negotiations with his European counterparts and say he backed a more pragmatic approach.
As Iran's top nuclear envoy, Larijani said on 25 April 2007 that he expected "new ideas" from senior EU officialJavier Solana at talks on resolving the deadlock betweenTehran's refusal to freezeits nuclear programme andUnited Nations Security Council demands that it do so.[28]
In theMarch 2008 parliamentary election, Larijani won a seat fromQom. He said he was willing to work with Ahmadinejad; according to Larijani, he did not disagree with Ahmadinejad on ideological issues and had only "differences in style". In May 2008, Larijani became speaker of theparliament. He was reelected in the next year as chairman of the parliament. He was re-elected in2012 elections as theQom district's high-receiving candidate. He was also elected for another term as chairman of the parliament on 5 June 2012 and was sworn in on 11 June 2012.
Larijani implied on 21 June 2009 that authorities took the side of one candidate without clarifying which candidate.[29]Just after the election, Larijani reportedly congratulated presidential candidateMir Hossein Mousavi as he, having "access to firsthand and classified information and news", believed Mousavi had won the election.[30] However, on 22 October 2012, during a QA meeting with the students ofIran University of Science and Technology, Larijani denied the allegations that he had congratulated Mousavi.[31] He was elected as speaker in the new Majlis in May 2016.[32]
In May 2021, Larijani declared his bid for the presidency in the2021 Iranian presidential election. However, the vettingGuardian Council, in a decision that astounded both the conservatives and reformists, disqualified him from running. Considering Larijani's long career as an Islamic Republic insider who has been part of the top echelons of power since the 1979 revolution, his disqualification was a possibility even his staunch detractors couldn't envision. The Guardian Council did not announce the reason for barring him.
In May 2024, Larijani submitted his application for his candidacy for the president in the2024 Iranian presidential election.[33]
In March 2025, US PresidentDonald Trump sent aletter to Iran seeking to reopen nuclear weapons negotiations.[34] Ayatollah Ali Khamenei later said, "Some bullying governments insist on negotiations not to resolve issues but to impose their own expectations," which was seen as in response to the letter.[35][36] Following this, in late March 2025, Larijani said Iran would have no choice but to develop nuclear weapons if attacked by the United States, Israel or its allies.[37]
On 13 June 2025 theIran–Israel war broke out with attacks on several nuclear facilities.[38] On June 22, the United States Air Force and Navyattacked theNatanz Nuclear Facility,Fordow Fuel Enrichment Plant, and theIsfahan Nuclear Technology/Research Center.[39]
On 5 August 2025, Larijani was appointed by presidentMasoud Pezeshkian to become secretary of the Supreme National Security Council for a second time.[40]
Larijani was considered to maintainMotalefeh membership and views while inHashemi Rafsanjani cabinet (1992–1994).[41] Iranian scholar Mehdi Moslem in his 2002 book named Factional Politics in Post-Khomeini Iran, suggests that Larijani had been a member ofMotalefeh and part of the ‘traditional right’.[42] Payam Mohseni, a fellow at theBelfer Center for Science and International Affairs, classifies Larijani as a lead figure in the ‘theocratic right’ camp, whose other prominent members areMahmoud Hashemi Shahroudi andMohammad Reza Mahdavi Kani.[43]
Larijani was one of the leaders of thePrinciplists Pervasive Coalition in2008 parliamentary elections,[44] and aUnited Front of Principlists leader.[45] DuringIranian 2016 parliamentary election Larijani was the leader of theFollowers of Wilayat faction,[46] although he was backed by the reformistList of Hope and said he is running as anindependent candidate.[47]
He is also described as acenter-right politician who has "slowly distanced himself from thePrinciplist camp"[48] and a "conservative-turned-moderate".[49]
Larijani is known to have close associates, including the interior ministerAbdolreza Rahmani Fazli,[50]Behrouz Nemati, spokesman for the parliament's presiding board,[48] andKazem Jalali, head of theparliament's research center.[48]
| Year | Election | Votes | % | Rank | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2005 | President | 1,713,810 | 5.83 | 6th | Lost |
| 2008 | Parliament | 239,436 | 73.01 | 1st | Won |
| 2012 | Parliament |  270,382 |  65.17 | 1st | Won |
| 2016 | Parliament | 191,329 | 40.31 | 2nd | Won |
| 2021 | President | N/a | Disqualified | ||
| 2024 | President | N/a | Disqualified | ||
According to a poll conducted in March 2016 byInformation and Public Opinion Solutions LLC (iPOS) among Iranian citizens, Larijani has 45% approval and 34% disapproval ratings and thus a +11% net popularity, while 11% of voters do notrecognize the name.[51]
Larijani is a brother ofSadiq Larijani (President of theJudicature),Mohammad-Javad Larijani,Bagher Larijani (Faculty Member ofTehran University of Medical Sciences), andFazel Larijani (Iran's former cultural attachée inOttawa).[20][52] Larijani is also a cousin ofAhmad Tavakkoli (Larijani's and Tavakkoli's mothers are sisters).[20] Larijani is the son-in-law of AyatollahMorteza Motahhari,[20][53]
His daughter, Fatemeh Ardeshir-Larijani, studies at theUniversity Hospitals Cleveland Medical Center in the United States.[54] During the2026 Iran massacres, a group ofIranian Americans inAtlanta, Georgia protested the employment of Fatemeh Ardeshir-Larijanioutside her place of employment at theWinship Cancer Institute.[55][56][57] Fatemeh Ardeshir-Larijani was fired from her position following the protests.[58][59]Buddy Carter, a Republican congressman for the state of Georgia, has demanded that Ardeshir-Larijani's medical license to treat patients in the United States be revoked, calling it a threat to national security.[60][58]
| Year | Title (English) | Title (Persian) | Publisher | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2004 | The Mathematical Method in Kant’s Philosophy | روش ریاضی در فلسفه کانت | University of Tehran Press | Kantian epistemology |
| Metaphysics and the Exact Sciences in Kant’s Philosophy | متافیزیک و علوم دقیقه در فلسفه کانت | Amir Kabir Publications | Kant and science | |
| Intuition and the Synthetic A Priori Judgments in Kant’s Philosophy | شهود و قضایای تألیفی ماتقدم در فلسفه کانت | Hermes Publications | Kantian metaphysics | |
| 2005 | Fresh Air | هوای تازه | Islamic Culture Publishing House | Essays / reflections |
| 2024 | Reason and Tranquility in Governance | عقل و سکون در حکمرانی | University of Tehran Press | Political philosophy |
TheMajlis speaker, Ali Larijani, was an IRGC brigadier general.
Quotations related toAli Larijani at Wikiquote
Media related toAli Larijani at Wikimedia Commons| International | |
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| National | |
