In this photo released by the office of the First Vice President of Iran, Iran’s First Vice President Mohammad Mokhbar, now acting president of the Islamic Republic of Iran, leads a cabinet meeting in Tehran on Monday.
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In this photo released by the office of the First Vice President of Iran, Iran’s First Vice President Mohammad Mokhbar, now acting president of the Islamic Republic of Iran, leads a cabinet meeting in Tehran on Monday.
AP
Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi, Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian and several other government officials were killed in a helicopter crash on Sunday, leaving the country’s leadership in limbo at a time of particularly high regional tensions.
After his death was confirmed by state media on Monday, Iran’s supreme leader, Ali Khamenei – who is the highest-ranking political and religious leader in the republic – announced five days of mourning and a new interim president: Mohammad Mokhbar. .
The president is Iran’s second-ranking – but top-elected – official. Mokhbar is expected to take over the role temporarily as Iran’s constitution requires new elections to be held within 50 days of the death of a sitting president.
Robin Wright, a joint fellow at the US Institute of Peace and the Wilson Center, says Raisi’s death could shake not only the country’s everyday life, but its long-term future, as the radical was widely considered a leader. Possible successor to 85-year-old Khamenei.
“There will be a process, they will get a new president, but the fighting behind the scenes will be very interesting,” he told Morning Edition.
Mokhbar, 68, is part of the three-member council charged with organizing the elections.
At a meeting on Monday he urged top Iranian officials to continue their work without disruption. Washington Post informed of.
“The structure and foundation of the system are strong and there will not be the slightest problem in the administration of the country under the permanent shadow of the leadership,” Mokhbar said.
He most recently served as Iran’s first vice president, the most senior of a dozen such positions. Despite holding a number of prominent roles in Iran’s government and charitable foundations, including those with ties to Khamenei, he has maintained a relatively low profile, and has been sanctioned by both the US and the EU.
Here’s what else you need to know about him.
His tenure as top deputy also included a wartime visit to Moscow
Mokhbar, who has a Ph.D. Is. in international law, was appointed first vice-president upon Raisi’s election in 2021.
According to the 1989 amended Iranian Constitution, the First Deputy of the President may be entrusted with “the responsibility of administering the affairs of the Council of Ministers and coordinating the actions of other deputies” with the approval of the President.
The First Vice President – with the approval of the Supreme Leader – would also assume the “powers and functions” of the President in case of his death, dismissal, or absence.
The article states, “The Council, composed of the Chairman of the Islamic Consultative Assembly, the Head of the Judicial Power and the First Deputy of the President, is obliged to arrange for the election of a new President within a maximum period of fifty days.” 131.
In his role as first vice president, Mokhbar traveled within Iran to garner political support, including a visit to the site of the 2022 building collapse that killed dozens of people and a campaign against people involved in corruption in the permitting process. The allegations were made public. He also had a hand in international diplomacy, welcoming leaders from places like Syria and China.
Vice presidents in Iran keep a relatively low profile, although Mokhbar made some headlines during his tenure.
He was part of a team of Iranian security officials who visited Moscow in October 2022, months after Russia’s war with Ukraine, to discuss arms deliveries. Reuters reported that the group has agreed to provide Russia’s military with more surface-to-surface missiles and drones.
Washington Post reported During that visit, Mokhbar blamed NATO for the killing of Ukrainians and proposed an Iranian-Russian working group to weaken Western sanctions.
He said of Iran, “We have been under these sanctions for 40 years and we have not allowed them to weaken the country’s government or seriously affect us.” He suggested that he had a lot to teach Moscow.
Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin, right, and Iran’s First Vice President Mohammad Mokhbar shake hands during the 2023 meeting in Kyrgyzstan.
Dmitry Astakhov/AP
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Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin, right, and Iran’s First Vice President Mohammad Mokhbar shake hands during the 2023 meeting in Kyrgyzstan.
Dmitry Astakhov/AP
Mokhber was a key player in the state-linked charity network
Mokhbar’s official biography describes his “experience in numerous management positions”, including running several foundations and the production of Iran’s first COVID-19 vaccine.
Mokhbar has played a significant role in several charitable trusts linked to the Iranian state, known as the ‘Iranian Government’. bonyads,
The US Treasury Department has described them as “opaque, semi-official organizations, typically controlled by current and former government officials and clerics, who report directly to the supreme leader.” It says a lack of accountability has “allowed systemic corruption and mismanagement to grow unchecked,” leading to wealth accumulation without benefiting the Iranian people as promised.
United Against Nuclear Iran, a US-based non-profit advocacy organization, says Mokhbar has spent a large part of his career “implicated in Iran’s ballistic missile and nuclear programs, terrorism, corruption, mismanagement, human rights violations, and sanctions evasion.” Spent working on “Important Boneyards”. ,
Mokhbar was most recently the head of Setad, an investment fund linked to Khamenei. Its full name is Setaad Ijariye Farmane Hazrat Imam, also known as Execution of the Order of Imam Khomeini (EIKO). According to Reuters, it was founded by Khamenei’s predecessor and many of its assets are derived from assets seized from Iranian citizens.
Mokhbar joined Setad in 2007 as its chief executive. The US imposed sanctions on the organization in 2013, calling it “a vast network of major companies hiding assets on behalf of the Iranian government leadership.”
Several years later, at the height of the pandemic, Mokhbar oversaw an effort to create a COVID-19 vaccine through one of Setad’s foundations. The Associated Press says “only a fraction” of the millions of doses it promised have “reached the public without any explanation.”
The US re-approved SETAD – which it calls EIKO – in 2021 with Mokhbar in person.
“EIKO has systematically violated the rights of dissidents by confiscating land and assets from opponents of the regime, including political opponents, religious minorities, and exiled Iranians, while, according to its leader, Mohammad Mokhber, being tasked by the Supreme Leader with implementing a resistance to the economy,” the Treasury Department said at the time, describing an economy that tries to evade sanctions.
Mokhbar was also among a group of seven Iranians sanctioned by the European Union in 2010 for involvement in “nuclear or ballistic missile activities”. He was removed from the list after two years.
Mokhber has also held senior roles at Sina Bank and the Mostazafan Foundation, both of which have been subject to US sanctions.
The Treasury Department has said Khamenei uses the Mostazafan Foundation – a group of stakes in key sectors including finance, energy and mining – “to reward his associates under the guise of donations.”
During Mokhber’s tenure at Mostazafan, he became embroiled in a legal battle between two mobile phone service providers — Turkcell and MTN — who wanted to enter the Iranian market, the AP reports. Turkcell eventually alleged in legal filings that Mokhber “used improper influence, including negotiating with and on behalf of the supreme leader in favor of MTN.”
Mokhber also joined Iran’s Expediency Council in 2022. The group advises the supreme leader and settles disputes over legislation between Iran’s parliament and the Guardian Council, which consists of six experts on Islamic law and six experts on constitutional law.
United Against Nuclear Iran says, “If his past is any indication of his future, he will use his current role in the elected branch of government to perpetuate corruption, impose a deterrent economy, and punish the regime’s enemies.” Will go.”
