Habibollah Asgaroladi Explained

Habibollah Asgaroladi
Office1:Minister of Commerce
Term Start1:17 August 1981
Term End1:2 August 1983
Predecessor1:Kazam Pour-Ardabili
Successor1:Hossein Abedi Jafari
Office2:Member of the Parliament of Iran
Constituency2:Tehran, Rey and Shemiranat
Term Start2:28 May 1980
Term End2:3 November 1980
Majority2:764,338 (46.7%)
Birth Date:1932 5, df=y
Birth Place:Tehran, Iran
Death Place:Tehran, Iran
Party:ICP

Habibollah Asgaroladi Mosalman (Persian: حبيب‌الله عسگراولادی مسلمان‎; 3 January 1932 – 5 November 2013) was a leading senior Iranian conservative and principlist politician who was the leader of Islamic Coalition Party, a highly influential conservative political party in Iran.[1] He was also a Vice President and two-time presidential candidate, first in July 1981 and next in 1985. During his 1981 bid, he was the subject of a failed assassination attempt that killed his bodyguard but left him mostly unharmed.

Career and activities

Asgaroladi was born to a wealthy merchant family in Damavand. His ancestors were Jews who converted to Shia islam.[2] [3] [4] [5] [6] Asgaroladi was a senior member of Iran's Expediency Council. He spent many years at the forefront of the Iranian cabinet and as First Vice President, serving as both Secretary of State for Social Security, Minister for Economy, Trade and Commerce as well as heading up the Homeland Security Agency and intelligence services in Iran. He ran in the 1981 and 1985 Presidential elections.[1] An attempt was made on his life in a failed assassination attempt in 1981.[7] Asgaroladi was a prominent member of Khomeini's inner circle and returned to Iran from Neuphle-le-Chateau with Araghi & Beheshti. Since the Islamic Revolution of 1979, he was chosen by Khomeini to be the founding father of the Khomeini Relief Foundation, the largest social welfare branch of the government in Iran. Some unofficial reports include him among the wealthiest individuals in Iran with a net worth of several billion dollars. Several members of the Asgaroladi family have been featured in the Fortune 500 ("Millionaire Mullahs" article), with Asadollah Asgaroladi possessing an estimated wealth of over US$9 billion. The Asgaroladis are now amongst the wealthiest families in Iran with commercial interests in real estate, banking, healthcare and exports of dried fruits, nuts, caviar and saffron.[8]

Asgaroladi published his autobiography in 2012 and was presented with an award by Ali Larijani, speaker of the Iranian Parliament. He died on 5 November 2013 in Tehran's Dey Hospital after being hospitalized for more than two months. His funeral was attended by the Supreme Leader Khamenei, President Hassan Rouhani, Mohsen Rafiqdoost, Ali Larijani and many other senior government officials.[9] [10]

See also

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Iran's Political Elite. United States Institute of Peace. 30 July 2013. Mehrzad Boroujerdi. Kourosh Rahimkhani. 11 October 2010 .
  2. Web site: Sad Fate of Iran's Jews – IWPR Institute for War & Peace Reporting . iwpr.net . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20100519093005/http://www.iwpr.net/report-news/sad-fate-iran%E2%80%99s-jews . 19 May 2010.
  3. Web site: Millionaire Mullahs. Forbes.
  4. Web site: Notable Persian Jews מנהיגים ואנשי שם ממוצא איראני.
  5. Web site: Media Watch | An Insider's View: Iran Ready to do Business with the West. PBS.
  6. Web site: Notable Jews of Persia & the Arabian Peninsula genealogy project .
  7. News: AROUND THE WORLD; Gunmen in Iran Wound a Presidential Candidate. The New York Times. 21 July 1981.
  8. Web site: IRVAJ Persian. https://web.archive.org/web/20070928092848/http://www.iranvajahan.net/cgi-bin/news.pl?l=fa&y=1382&m=12&d=01&a=3. dead. 28 September 2007.
  9. Web site: حبیب‌الله عسگر اولادی درگذشت. تابناک . TABNAK. 14 August 1392. fa.
  10. Web site: حبیب الله عسگر اولادی درگذشت. https://archive.today/20131105175317/http://iranelect.ir/showpage.aspx?id=330746&title=حبیب-الله-عسگر-اولادی-درگذشت. dead. 5 November 2013.