Middle-east Arab News Opinion | Asharq Al-awsat

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Iranian president-elect Hassan Rouhani stands in front of a portrait of the late revolutionary founder Ayatollah Khomeini, during visit of his shrine, just outside Tehran, Iran, Sunday, June 16, 2013. .(AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi)

Iran: Reformists call for pragmatism on Rouhani administration

by Ali M. Pedram | Jul 13, 2013 | Middle East

London, Asharq Al-Awsat—Mostafa Tajzadeh, a prominent Iranian reformist and infamous political prisoner, has written a letter from inside Evin Prison outlining a change in the reformist movement’s framework following the election of Hassan Rouhani, according to...

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Men wait in line at a polling station to vote during presidential elections in Qom, 125 kilometers (78 miles) south of the capital Tehran, Iran, Friday, June 14, 2013. (AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi)

Iran: Qom divided over presidential candidates

by Asharq Al-Awsat | Jul 3, 2013 | Middle East

London, Asharq Al-Awsat—A damaging row at the Society of Seminary Teachers of Qom has broken out over support for presidential candidates, though one some senior member of the society claim that the dispute is not critical. The organization was founded before the 1979...

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Former chief of Iran’s Revolutionary Guard, Mohsen Rezaei, a hopeful for the upcoming presidential election, waves to media, after registering his candidacy, at the election headquarters of interior ministry in Tehran, Iran, Friday, May 10, 2013.

Candidate Profile: Mohsen Rezaei Mirghaed

by Asharq Al-Awsat | Jun 12, 2013 | Features, Profiles

For many Iranians, the name “Mohsen Rezaei” is closely associated with memories of the bloody war between Iran and Iraq in the 1980s, thanks to his role at the top of the Iranian military during that conflict. Widely seen as a cat’s paw of Supreme Leader...

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Mayor of Tehran, Iranian Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf speaks during a press conference after registering his candidacy for the upcoming presidential election at the interior ministry in Tehran on May 11, 2013. Source: AFP Photo/Behrouz Mehri

Candidate Profile: Mohammad-Baqer Qalibaf

by Asharq Al-Awsat | Jun 10, 2013 | Features, Profiles

At the age of 19, Qalibaf participated in the Iran–Iraq War and was soon appointed commander of a division despite his youth. After the war, he was appointed the deputy commander of the Resistance Force and Basij troops, and began climbing the ranks of the Iranian...

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In this photo released by the Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting on Friday, May 31, 2013, presidential candidates from left, Mohammad Gharazi, Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf, Ali Akbar Velayati, Saeed Jalili, Gholam Ali Haddad Adel, Mohammad Reza Aref, Mohsen Rezaei, Hasan Rowhani, attend a TV debate in a state-run TV studio, in Tehran, Iran. (AP)

Iran: Rouhani and Aref to form coalition

by Asharq Al-Awsat | Jun 10, 2013 | Middle East

London, Asharq Al-Awsat—In what may prove to be a boost for Iran’s beleaguered reformists, the two liberal-leaning candidates for the upcoming presidential election have reportedly agreed to form a coalition to avoid splitting the reformist vote. The two candidates,...