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Masoud Pezeshkian

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Masoud Pezeshkian
مسعود پزشکیان
Pezeshkian in 2024
9th President of Iran
Assumed office
28 July 2024
Supreme LeaderAli Khamenei
Vice PresidentMohammad Reza Aref
Preceded byEbrahim Raisi
Mohammad Mokhber (acting)
Member of the Consultative Assembly
In office
27 May 2008 – 28 July 2024
ConstituencyTabriz, Osku and Azarshahr, (East Azerbaijan)
Majority261,605 (36.27%)
Minister of Health and Medical Education
In office
22 August 2001 – 24 August 2005
PresidentMohammad Khatami
Preceded byMohammad Farhadi
Succeeded byKamran Bagheri Lankarani
Personal details
Born (1954-09-29) 29 September 1954 (age 69)
Mahabad, Imperial State of Iran
Political partyIndependent
Other political
affiliations		Reformists
SpouseFatemeh Majidi (died 1994)
Children4[1]
Alma materTabriz University of Medical Sciences (MBBS)
Iran University of Medical Sciences
ProfessionHeart surgeon
Signature
Websitedrpezeshkian.ir
Military service
Allegiance Iran
Branch/service IRGC
Battles/warsIran–Iraq War

Masoud Pezeshkian (Persian: مسعود پزشکیان, pronounced [mæsʔˈuːd pezeʃkiːˈjɒːn]; born 29 September 1954) is an Iranian politician and cardiac surgeon, who has been the current president of Iran since 28 July 2024.[2] He previously represented Tabriz, Osku and Azarshahr electoral district in the Parliament of Iran, from 2008 to 2024 and served as its First Deputy Speaker from 2016 to 2020. He was Minister of Health and Medical Education between 2001 and 2005 in the Government of Mohammad Khatami.[3]

He ran in the 2013 presidential election, but withdrew. He ran again in the 2021 election, but was unsuccessful.[4]

For the 2024 election, Pezeshkian's candidacy was approved and he won the 2024 presidential election on 5 July in a runoff with 54.76% of the popular vote.[5] He was formally appointed as the President of Iran on 28 July 2024.[6] He is the 9th and the oldest person to take the office of President of Iran, at the age of 69 years.[7]

Early life and education

Pezeshkian was born in Mahabad, West Azerbaijan, on 29 September 1954[8] to Iranian Azerbaijani parents.[9][10] In 1973, he received his diploma and moved to Zabol to serve his conscription duty. It was during this time that he became interested in medicine. After completing his service, he returned to his home province, where he entered medical school and graduated with a degree in general medicine. During the Iran–Iraq War (1980–1988), Pezeshkian frequently visited the front lines, where he was responsible for sending medical teams and working as a fighter and doctor. He finished his general practitioner course in 1985, and started teaching physiology at the medical college.

After the war, Pezeshkian continued his education, specializing in general surgery at Tabriz University of Medical Sciences. In 1993, he received a subspecialty in cardiac surgery from Iran University of Medical Sciences. He later became a specialist in heart surgery, leading him to become president of Tabriz University of Medical Sciences in 1994, a position he held for five years.[11]

Political career

Pezeshkian's political career began when he joined Mohammad Khatami's administration as Deputy Health Minister in 1997. He was appointed Health Minister four years later, serving from 2001 to 2005.[12][dead link] Then he was elected to the Iranian parliament in five terms, from 2008 to 2024 representing Tabriz, Osku and Azarshahr. He served as the First Deputy Speaker of the parliament from 2016 to 2020.

Presidency (2024–present)

See also: Government of Masoud Pezeshkian

On 6 July 2024, Pezeshkian was elected President after winning the 5 July run-off of the 2024 presidential election with 16.3 million votes (53.7%) to Saeed Jalili's 13.5 million (44.3%).[13] He was formally appointed as the president by the Supreme Leader of Iran Ali Khamenei on 28 July 2024,[6] and was sworn in before the Iranian parliament on 30 July.[14]

After taking office, Pezeshkian retained Mohammad Eslami as Vice President and head of the Atomic Energy Organization,[15] while appointing the former First Vice President of Iran Mohammad Reza Aref and former Vice President and head of the Foundation of Martyrs and Veterans Affairs Saeed Ohadi back to their posts, in addition to appointing former Education Minister Mohsen Haji-Mirzaei as his chief of staff,[16][17][18] former foreign minister Mohammad Javad Zarif as the Vice President for Strategic Affairs,[19] Mohammad Ja'far Ghae'em Panah as the Vice President for Executive Affairs,[20] former finance minister Ali Tayebnia as his senior adviser,[21] Hamid Pourmohammadi as Vice President and head of the Plan and Budget Organization, Shahram Dabiri Oskuei as his deputy for parliamentary affairs,[22] Hossein Afshin as Vice President for Science, Technology and Knowledge-based Affairs,[23] and Zahra Behrouz-Azar, a critic of the Guidance Patrol, as the Vice President for Women and Family Affairs.[24]

Following Iran's threats to attack Israel for the assassination of Ismail Haniyeh in July 2024, Pezeshkian reportedly urged Khamenei to reconsider, warning of severe consequences to Iran's economy and infrastructure if an attack was carried out.[25] According to The Telegraph, Pezeshkian clashed with the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, who pushed for a direct strike on Israel, while he advocated for targeting Israeli bases in neighboring countries in order to avoid a full-scale war.[26]

The 19 ministers nominated as part Pezeshkian's cabinet were announced on 11 August 2024.[27]

Views

Pezeshkian and Mahmoud Sadeghi wearing IRGC uniforms (2019)

Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps

Pezeshkian is a supporter of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), and has called its current incarnation "different from the past".[28] He condemned the declaration of the IRGC as a terrorist organization by the Trump administration in 2019.[29] After the 2019 Iranian shoot-down of an American drone, Pezeshkian called the American government "terrorist" and described the IRGC's action to target the drone as "a strong punch to the mouths of the leaders of criminal America".[30] During a university meeting and in response to some criticisms, Pezeshkian put on an IRGC uniform, and said that he would wear it again.[31]

Pezeshkian during the Iran–Iraq War (1980–1988)

Anti-government protests

Pezeshkian has criticized the Iranian system multiple times. During the 2009 post-election protests, in a speech, Pezeshkian criticized the way the protesters were treated. In his speech, he mentioned the words of the first Shiite Imam [Ali] addressed to Malik Ashtar not to treat people "like a wild animal".[32]

Pezeshkian considered Iran's method of managing the 2018 protests as "scientifically and intellectually wrong". He blamed the country's system for all the events and said: "We should have done better."[33] After the 2022 protests, Pezeshkian demanded the creation of an assessment and clarification team regarding the death of Mahsa Amini. Although he considered the way of dealing with the protesters and their trial to be contrary to the constitution and demanded that the defendants should get lawyers, he later issued a statement, condemned the protests and did not consider it to be in the people's interest.[34]

Foreign policy

Pezeshkian has supported restarting discussions with the United States over the nuclear program of Iran, vowing to revive the agreement Iran reached with the U.S. and other world powers in 2015, in exchange for lifting the international sanctions against it.[35]

He has supported building amicable relationships with all countries except for Israel,[36] stating that Iran would keep supporting the "Axis of Resistance" against it.[37] After taking office as president, he stated that Iran would continue to support the Palestinians.[14]

Ethnic views

Pezeshkian emphasizes the rights of ethnic groups such as Azeris, Kurds, and Baluchis and states that the rights of these groups should be protected. He supports the implementation of Article 15 of the Iranian Constitution for all ethnicities. This principle says: "The official and common language and script of the people of Iran is Persian. Documents, correspondence, official texts and textbooks must be in this language and script, but the use of local and ethnic languages in the press and mass media and the teaching of their literature in schools is free, along with the Persian language." He argues that the implementation of this principle mitigates separatist and dissident motivations.[38] Pezeshkian also supports teaching of the Azerbaijani language in Iranian schools.[4]

Personal life

Pezeshkian's wife was a gynecologist.[39] In 1993, she died along with their youngest son in a car crash.[40] He raised his remaining two sons and daughter alone and has never remarried.[41] His daughter, Zahra, has a master's degree in chemistry from Sharif University of Technology, and was working at Jam Petrochemical before the Rouhani government came to power. She is also regarded as a political adviser.

Pezeshkian is a teacher of the Quran, and a reciter of the Nahj al-balagha, a key text for Shia Muslims.[42]

In addition to Persian, Pezeshkian speaks many languages, including Azerbaijani, Kurdish, Arabic and English.[43][44]

Pezeshkian is a fan of Tractor S.C.[45]

References

  1. ^ Ahangar, Ali. "مسعود پزشكيان؛ كسي كه مثل هيچ كس نيست". Etemaad Daily (in Persian). Archived from the original on 11 June 2024. Retrieved 29 June 2024.
  2. ^ Hafezi, Parisa (28 July 2024). "Khamenei officially endorses relative moderate as Iran's president". Reuters. Retrieved 28 July 2024.
  3. ^ "در مورد مسعود پزشکیان در ویکی‌تابناک بیشتر بخوانید" [Who is Masoud Pezeshkian?]. www.tabnak.ir (in Persian). Archived from the original on 30 May 2024. Retrieved 10 June 2024.
  4. ^ a b "افراد ردصلاحیت‌شده فقط توانستند یک نامه بنویسند". Iranian Labour News Agency. 1 March 2016. Archived from the original on 3 July 2017. Retrieved 2 March 2016.
  5. ^ "Reformist lawmaker Masoud Pezeshkian wins Iran's presidential vote". CNN. 6 July 2024. Archived from the original on 6 July 2024. Retrieved 6 July 2024.
  6. ^ a b "Iran's Khamenei formally grants Masoud Pezeshkian presidential powers". Agence France-Presse. The Hindu. 28 July 2024. Retrieved 28 July 2024.
  7. ^ Molaei, Niloofar (6 July 2024). "پزشکیان در کنار آیت الله خامنه ای رکورد زد /کدام شهرها رئیس جمهورساز بوده اند؟ +جدول" (in Persian). KhabarOnline. Archived from the original on 6 July 2024. Retrieved 7 July 2024.
  8. ^ "مسعود پزشکیان کیست؟" [Who is Masoud Pezeshkian?]. Entekhab (in Persian). 21 May 2024. Archived from the original on 18 June 2024. Retrieved 28 June 2024.
  9. ^ "مسعود پزشکیان در هر فرصتی بر تُرک بودن خود تأکید می‌کند" [Masoud Pezeshkian emphasizes his Turkishness at every opportunity]. Fararu (in Persian). Retrieved 17 July 2024.
  10. ^ "Masoud Pezeshkian: The reformist now Iran's president-elect". www.bbc.com. Retrieved 17 July 2024.
  11. ^ "در مورد مسعود پزشکیان در ویکی‌تابناک بیشتر بخوانید". www.tabnak.ir. Archived from the original on 30 May 2024. Retrieved 13 June 2024.
  12. ^ "Persian Press Review". Tehran Times. 29 May 2010. Archived from the original on 14 June 2011. Retrieved 9 September 2010.
  13. ^ Fassihi, Farnaz (6 July 2024). "Reformist Candidate Wins Iran's Presidential Election". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 6 July 2024. Retrieved 6 July 2024.
  14. ^ a b "Iran's president Pezeshkian sworn in at parliament". France 24. Agence France-Presse. 30 July 2024. Retrieved 30 July 2024.
  15. ^ "Mohammad Eslami retained as VP, Iran's nuclear chief". United News of India. 11 August 2024. Retrieved 11 August 2024.
  16. ^ Karimi, Nasser (28 July 2024). "Reformist formally takes over as Iran's president after supreme leader offers endorsement". Associated Press. Retrieved 28 July 2024.
  17. ^ "Iran's President Pezeshkian makes first appointments, names First Vice President". Daijiworld. Indo-Asian News Service. 28 July 2024. Retrieved 28 July 2024.
  18. ^ "سعید اوحدی دوباره رئیس بنیاد شهید شد/سعی سعید بین حج و بنیاد شهید!". Tabnak News Agency (in Persian). 11 August 2024. Retrieved 11 August 2024.
  19. ^ "Negotiator of 2015 nuclear deal Mohammad Javad Zarif named Iran VP". Daijiworld. Agence-France Presse. 2 August 2024. Retrieved 3 August 2024.
  20. ^ "محمدجعفر قائم پناه، معاون اجرایی دولت پزشکیان کیست؟". KhabarOnline News Agency (in Persian). 2 August 2024. Retrieved 3 August 2024.
  21. ^ "علی طیب‌نیا کیست؟ «آقای ضد تورم» یا مقصر «سقوط بازار»". BBC (in Persian). 4 August 2024. Retrieved 4 August 2024.
  22. ^ "Iran president makes new appointments". Iran Front Page. 4 August 2024. Retrieved 4 August 2024.
  23. ^ "حسین افشین معاون علمی رئیس جمهور شد + سوابق". Moj News Agency (in Persian). 11 August 2024. Retrieved 11 August 2024.
  24. ^ Shahla, Arsalan (10 August 2024). "Iran's Pezeshkian Names Morality Police Critic as Vice President". Bloomberg News. Archived from the original on 10 August 2024. Retrieved 11 August 2024.
  25. ^ "Iranian president Pezeshkian asks supreme leader to refrain from attacking Israel - report". The Jerusalem Post. 7 August 2024. Archived from the original on 8 August 2024. Retrieved 8 August 2024.
  26. ^ Makoii, Akhtar (9 August 2024). "Iran's new president battles revolutionary guard to stop all-out war with Israel". The Telegraph. ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved 9 August 2024.
  27. ^ "Iranian president names moderate and female ministers as he unveils cabinet". Al Jazeera. 11 August 2024. Retrieved 11 August 2024.
  28. ^ مسعود پزشکیان: من بازهم لباس سپاه می‌پوشم/ سپاه با چیزی که الآن می‌بینید متفاوت است (in Persian). 13 June 2024. Archived from the original on 13 June 2024. Retrieved 13 June 2024 – via www.rokna.net.
  29. ^ "ملت با قدرت از سپاه مقتدر دفاع می‌کند". www.alef.ir. 16 June 2024. Archived from the original on 14 January 2020. Retrieved 16 June 2024.
  30. ^ "پزشکیان: سپاه مشت محکمی به دهان یاوه‌گویی‌های آمریکا زد/ طنین شعار «مرگ بر آمریکا» در مجلس". www.alef.ir. 16 June 2024. Archived from the original on 18 June 2024. Retrieved 16 June 2024.
  31. ^ "پزشکیان: من بازهم لباس سپاه می‌پوشم؛ سپاه اگر نبود کشور تجزیه شده بود". اصلاحات نیوز (in Persian). 16 June 2024. Archived from the original on 18 June 2024. Retrieved 16 June 2024.
  32. ^ Mehrabi, Ehsan (10 June 2024). "Who is Masoud Pezeshkian, the Only Pro-Reform Candidate?". Iran Wire. Archived from the original on 17 June 2024. Retrieved 21 June 2024.
  33. ^ "انتخابات ریاست‌جمهوری ایران؛ مهدی کروبی از نامزدی مسعود پزشکیان حمایت کرد". BBC News فارسی (in Persian). 19 June 2024. Archived from the original on 20 June 2024. Retrieved 21 June 2024.
  34. ^ Dagres, Holly (19 June 2024). "Masoud Pezeshkian is a possible game changer in the upcoming Iranian presidential election". Atlantic Council. Archived from the original on 20 June 2024. Retrieved 21 June 2024.
  35. ^ Motevalli, Golnar; Shahla, Arslan (6 July 2024). "Iran Elects President Who Wants to Revive Nuclear Talks With West". Bloomberg. Archived from the original on 6 July 2024. Retrieved 7 July 2024.
  36. ^ "Iranian reformist Masoud Pezeshkian wins presidential election". The Times of Israel. 6 July 2024. Archived from the original on 6 July 2024. Retrieved 7 July 2024.
  37. ^ "Masoud Pezeshkian Set To Become Iran President: What It Means For India". NDTV. 6 July 2024. Archived from the original on 6 July 2024. Retrieved 7 July 2024.
  38. ^ رادیوفردا (25 April 2018). "پزشکیان: اصل ۱۵ قانون اساسی برای همه اجرا شود". رادیو فردا (in Persian). Archived from the original on 14 June 2024. Retrieved 16 June 2024.
  39. ^ "مقام‌های جمهوری اسلامی و همسرانشان؛ مردان نام‌دار و زنان 'بی‌نام'". BBC News فارسی (in Persian). Archived from the original on 10 June 2024. Retrieved 13 June 2024.
  40. ^ Wintour, Patrick (6 July 2024). "Masoud Pezeshkian: the former heart surgeon who became president of Iran". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Archived from the original on 7 July 2024. Retrieved 6 July 2024.
  41. ^ "مسعود پزشکیان", ویکی‌پدیا، دانشنامهٔ آزاد (in Persian), 13 June 2024, archived from the original on 7 July 2024, retrieved 13 June 2024
  42. ^ "Reformist candidate Masoud Pezeshkian shakes up Iran presidential election". www.ft.com. Archived from the original on 13 June 2024. Retrieved 13 June 2024.
  43. ^ Sharifi, Kian. "Who is Masud Pezeshkian, Iran's President-Elect?". Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty. Archived from the original on 6 July 2024. Retrieved 6 July 2024.
  44. ^ Wintour, Patrick (6 July 2024). "Masoud Pezeshkian: the former heart surgeon who became president of Iran". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Archived from the original on 7 July 2024. Retrieved 6 July 2024.
  45. ^ "پزشکیان: اکثر بازی‌های تراکتور را با نوه‌ام محمدحسین به استادیوم می‌رویم /با هم بحث می‌کنیم؛ نقدم می‌کند، اما هیچ‌وقت دعوا نمی‌کنیم – خبرآنلاین". www.khabaronline.ir. Archived from the original on 7 July 2024. Retrieved 16 June 2024.
Political offices
Preceded by Minister of Health and Medical Education
2001–2005 		Succeeded by
Preceded by First Vice Speaker of Parliament of Iran
2016–2020 		Succeeded by
Preceded by President of Iran
2024–present 		Incumbent
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