Ayatollah Alireza Arafi has moved into a pivotal constitutional role following the death of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, becoming the clerical member of Iran’s temporary leadership council under Article 111 of the Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Iran.
Article 111 sets out the succession procedure if the Supreme Leader dies or is unable to perform his duties. In such circumstances, a three-member council assumes the Leader’s powers until the Assembly of Experts selects a permanent successor.
The interim council consists of:
The interim council consists of the President, the Head of the Judiciary and a senior Islamic jurist drawn from the Guardian Council. Following Khamenei’s death, the body is composed of President Masoud Pezeshkian, judiciary chief Gholamhossein Mohseni Ejei and Arafi as the designated jurist member.
Although some descriptions have referred to Arafi as interim Supreme Leader, constitutionally he is one part of a collective authority rather than the sole office holder.
Born in 1959 in Meybod in Yazd province, Arafi comes from a clerical background and was educated in Qom, Iran’s leading centre of Shia religious scholarship. Over decades, he rose through the country’s theological institutions and became firmly embedded within the Islamic Republic’s religious establishment.
His influence stems primarily from institutional religious authority rather than electoral politics. He serves as a member of the Guardian Council, the body responsible for vetting legislation and approving election candidates. He is also a member of the Assembly of Experts, the 88-member clerical body tasked with appointing and supervising the Supreme Leader.
In addition, Arafi heads Iran’s national seminary system and previously led Al-Mustafa International University, an institution overseeing religious education for clerics from Iran and abroad. His positions within both the Guardian Council and the Assembly of Experts placed him at the constitutional core of the state even before the succession process began.
Khamenei’s death marks only the second leadership transition since the 1979 Islamic Revolution. The Assembly of Experts is now required to appoint a permanent successor, though the timing may be shaped by security and political conditions.
Until that decision is taken, Arafi, alongside the president and judiciary chief, forms part of the temporary leadership guiding Iran through a period of significant domestic and regional tension.
The explosion at King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh on Saturday afternoon killed at least 12 people and injured a further 309, according t...
Indian police detained more than 2,000 protesters in Delhi on Saturday as authorities blocked a planned demonstration calling for the resignation o...
At least 12 people, including three children, have been killed in a Russian attack on the Ukrainian city of Zaporizhzhia, a day after U.S. Presiden...
Leaders of countries from the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) have agreed to hold coordinated population censuses around 2030. They took the decision at the CIS Council of Heads of State meeting in Awaza, Turkmenistan on Friday, media reported.
The explosion at King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh on Saturday afternoon killed at least 12 people and injured a further 309, according to Saudi Arabia’s Civil Aviation Authority. The airport remains closed until further notice.
Britain and Israel have reached a temporary compromise over the future of the British Consulate General in East Jerusalem, easing a diplomatic dispute that had threatened to further strain relations between the two countries.
South African judge Navanethem “Navi” Pillay won the Nobel Peace Prize on Friday “for her efforts to promote peace and international law,” the Norwegian Nobel Committee said.
The U.S. has imposed sanctions on the International Criminal Court (ICC) on Friday (9 October) escalating tensions with European allies and potentially targeting companies that provide services to the tribunal. The move came hours after former ICC judge Navi Pillay won the Nobel Peace Prize.
The explosion at King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh on Saturday afternoon killed at least 12 people and injured a further 309, according to Saudi Arabia’s Civil Aviation Authority. The airport remains closed until further notice.
Turkic states are assessing the feasibility of passport-free travel between countries using national ID cards, Kürşad Zorlu, the Deputy Chairman of Türkiye’s ruling AK Party said on Saturday.
European Union measures suspending import duties on 80 per cent of Armenian exports to the bloc came into effect on Saturday. The temporary liberalisation measures are aimed at supporting Armenian producers and exporters following trade restrictions imposed on the country's products by Russia.
Georgia is enjoying one of its biggest and highest-quality grape harvests since independence. By 6 October, growers in the country's main wine-producing region, Kakheti, had delivered 182,210 tonnes of grapes, with 99 per cent rated medium or high quality, despite recent protests over prices.
Uzbekistan has unveiled plans to deepen economic ties with Central Asia and Azerbaijan, proposing shared artificial intelligence infrastructure, a critical minerals alliance and a regional trade strategy extending to 2035.
You can download the AnewZ application from Play Store and the App Store.
What is your opinion on this topic?
Leave the first comment