Baku, Azerbaijan, May 24
By Fatih Karimov - Trend:
Ayatollah Ahmad Jannati has been elected as the new Speaker of the Iran's Assembly of Experts, Iran's State IRINN TV reported May 24.
Jannati was elected by a 51-vote majority, while his competitors Ayatollah Ebrahim Amini and Ayatollah Mahmoud Hashemi gained 21 and 13 votes respectively.
The 89-year old conservative politician Jannati is also a member of the Islamic Republic's Expediency Discernment Council.
The Assembly of Experts is a deliberative body of Mujtahids (Islamic theologians) that is tasked with appointing and removing Iran's supreme leader and supervising his activities.
The recent round of assembly election which was held last February was followed by greater sensitivity due to raised concerns over the Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khameni's health condition.
The Assembly of Experts has 88 members which are elected by people for eight-year term.