Rouhani Loses Key Ally as Former Iran Leader Rafsanjani Dies
- Ayatollah was one of the founders of Iran’s Islamic Republic
- TV stations broadcast images of his life as mourning starts
Hashemi Rafsanjani.
Photographer: RAMIN TALAIE/BLOOMBERG NEWSThis article is for subscribers only.
Ali Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, a co-founder of the Islamic Republic of Iran and a key ally of President Hassan Rouhani, has died from heart failure four months before the next presidential election. He was 82.
Rafsanjani, a former two-term president, died hours after being admitted to a Tehran hospital on Sunday, the official Islamic Republic News Agency reported. The country went into mourning as soon as his death was signaled by television channels showing images of him praying, and broadcasting his speeches and sermons.