Baku, Azerbaijan, July 19
By Emil Ilgar – Trend:
Iran’s Guardian Council has re-elected Ayatollah Ahmad Jannati, a conservative and hardliner cleric, as the secretary of Guardian Council.
The Spokesman of the Council Abbas Ali Kadkhodaei told Fars news agency that Jannati was re-elected as secretary for the next six years.
The Guardian Council is one of the most influential entities in Iran, currently controlled by conservatives. The Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei appoints six of twelve members of Council and the remaining ones are nominated by the judiciary system, approved by parliament.
The Guardian Council has various duties, from qualifying candidates for parliamentary and presidential elections to approving the results of voting.
The 91-year Jannati has been a member of Guardian Council since the beginning of Islamic Republic in 1979 and has served as secretary of the Council the last 25 years.