The Leader or Leadership Council

Article 10716: After the honorable source of emulation, the great leader of the global Islamic Revolution, and the founder of the Islamic Republic of Iran, the venerated Grand Ayatollah, Imam Khomaini, may his noble character be sanctified, who was acknowledged and accepted by the undisputed majority of the people as the marja‘and the leader, the responsibility for designating the leader shall be with the Experts who are appointed by the people. The Experts consider all the qualified jurisprudents as discussed in Articles 5 and 109, and consult with one another about them. If they find one of them the most knowledgeable about the rules and subjects of jurisprudence, or political and social issues, or acceptability by the public, or significance in any one of the qualifications indicated in Article 109, that person shall be selected as the leader; otherwise, one of the Experts is chosen and declared as the leader. The leader who is appointed by the Experts is in charge of the sovereignty of the command and all the responsibilities that derive from it. Before the law, the leader is equal to other people in the country. Article 10817: The law on the number and qualifications of the Experts, the manner of their selection, and the internal guidelines of their meetings in the first term must be prepared by the jurisprudents of the first Guardian Council. It must be ratified by their majority vote, and submitted to the leader for the final approval. Whence, any change or review of this law and approval of the regulations related to the responsibilities of the Experts falls within the authority of the Experts them- selves.

Article 10918: The qualifications and attributes of the leader are as follows:

1. scholarly qualification for issuing religious ruling ( fatwa) concerning various discussions in jurisprudence;

2. required justice and piety in leading the Islamic community;

16 Article 107 (1979 Edition): Whenever one of the jurisprudents who fulfills the qualifications dis- cussed in Article 5 of this constitution is acknowledged and accepted by the undisputed majority of the people as the leader and the exalted source of religious conduct (marja‘-i taql-id)—as has been the case with the exalted source of religious conduct and the leader of the Revolution, Imam Khomaini, may his noble character be sanctified—this leader is in charge of the sovereignty of the command and all the responsibilities that derive from that. Otherwise, the Experts, who are elected by the people, con- sider and consult with each other about all the persons who have the qualifications to be the marja‘ and the leader. If they find one marja‘possessing of special significance for leadership, they introduce him to the people as the leader; otherwise, they designate three or five marja‘s, who are qualified for the leader- ship, and introduce them to the people as members of the Leadership Council. 17 Article 108 (1979 Edition): The law on the number and qualifications of the Experts, the manner of their selection, and the internal guideline for their meetings of the first term, must be prepared by the jurisprudents of the first Guardian Council, it must be ratified by their majority vote, and submitted to the leader for the final approval. Whence, any change or review of this law falls within the authority of the Assembly of Experts. 18 Article 109 (1979 Edition): The qualifications and attributes of the leader or members of the Leader- ship Council are as follows:

1. scholarly qualification and piety for issuing religious ruling ( fatwa) and serving as the marja‘;
2. political and social insight, courage, power and sufficient administrative abilities for leadership. 24
3. sound political and social perspective, prudence, courage, sufficient administrative capability, and power for leadership. In case there are a number of candidates who meet these qualifications, the person with a more efficacious political and jurisprudential insight has priority. Article 11019: The authorities and responsibilities of the leader:
4. determining the overall politics of the Islamic Republic system of Iran after consultation with the Expediency Council;
5. supervising the proper implementation of the general policies of the system;
6. issuing referendums;
7. commanding the armed forces;
8. declaring war, peace, and mobilizing forces;
9. issuing appointments, dismissals, and accepting the resignation of: a. the jurisprudents of the Guardian Council, b. the highest position of the judiciary power, c. the president of the mass media of the Islamic Republic of Iran,

19 19Article 110 (1979 Edition): The authorities and responsibilities of the leadership:

1. appointing the jurisprudents of the Guardian Council;
2. appointing the country’s supreme judicial authority;
3. commanding the armed forces as follows: a. appointment and dismissal of the chief of the general staff, b. appointment and dismissal of the commander-in-chief of the Islamic Pasdaran Revolutionary Corps, c. establishing a Supreme National Defense Council, consisting of the following seven members: • the President of the Republic, • the prime minister, • the defense minister, • the chief of the general staff, • the commander-in-chief of the Islamic Pasdaran Revolutionary Corps, • two advisors appointed by the leader, • appointing the supreme commanders-in-chief of the three national forces, upon the recommendation of the Supreme National Defense Council, d. declaring war, peace, and mobilizing national forces upon the recommendation of the Supreme National Defense Council;
4. signing the appointment of the President of the Republic, after his election by the public. The qualifications of the candidates for presidency, with respect to the conditions set forth by the constitution, must be confirmed by the Guardian Council prior to the general elections and approved by the leader for the first term;
5. dismissing the President of the Republic, with regard to the best interests of the country, after either the Supreme Court has issued a ruling convicting him of deviating from his legal duties, or the National Consultative Assembly has cast a vote against his political competence;
6. pardoning or reducing the sentences of convicts, within the framework of Islamic criteria, upon the recommendation of the Supreme Court. 25 d. the chief of the general staff, e. the commander-in-chief of the Islamic Pasdaran Revolutionary Corps, f. the supreme commanders-in-chief of the security and armed forces;
7. coordinating the relationship among the three branches of the government and resolving any conflict among them;
8. resolving issues in the system that cannot be settled by ordinary means through the Expediency Council;
9. signing the appointment of the President of the Republic, after his election by the public. The qualifications of the candidates for presidency, with respect to the conditions set forth by the constitution, must be confirmed by the Guardian Council prior to the general elections and approved by the leader for the first term;
10. dismissing the President of the Republic, with regard to the best interests of the country, after either the Supreme Court has issued a ruling convicting him of deviating from his legal duties, or the Islamic Consultative Assembly, based on Article 89, has cast a vote against his competence;
11. pardoning or reducing the sentences of convicts, within the framework of Islamic criteria, after the head of the judiciary power has recommended such a motion. The leader can transfer some of his duties and authorities to another person. Article 11120: The leader will be dismissed from his position in case he is incapable of performing his legal responsibilities, becomes deficient in one of the qualifications mentioned in Article 5 and 109; or it becomes evident that from the offset he has been lacking in some of the qualifications. This issue shall be determined by the Council of Experts, as mentioned in Article 108. In the aforementioned case, or in case of the death, resignation, or dismissal of the leader, the Experts are responsible for designating a new leader as soon as possible. Until the leader is introduced, a council consisting of the President of the Republic, the head of the judiciary power, and one of the jurisprudents of the Guardian Council, selected by the Expediency Council, will temporarily assume all the responsibilities of the leadership. If during this time any of them, for any reason, cannot fulfill his duties, another individual will be assigned in his place according to the vote of the assembly and with respect to maintaining the majority of the jurisprudents in the council.

20 Article 111 (1979 Edition): In the event the leader, or any member of the Leadership Council, is debilitated to perform the legal responsibilities of leadership, or becomes deficient in one of the qualifications mentioned in Article 109; he will be dismissed from his position. This issue is examined by the Experts, as mentioned in Article 108. Regulations for the convening of the Experts to evaluate and implement this Article is determined in the first session of the Council of Experts. 26 The council must obtain three-fourths approval of the members of Expediency Council, in order to fulfill the responsibilities that are outlined in Article 110, sections 1, 3, 5, 10, and segments “d,” “e,” “f” of section 6. Whenever the leader, due to illness or other incidents, is temporarily unable to fulfill the duties of leadership, the council mentioned above in this Article assumes his responsibilities. Article 11221: The leadership orders the Expediency Council to meet in order to attend to cases where the Guardian Council finds legislation made by the Islamic Consultative Assembly in violation of the Shariat or the constitution; the Assembly, with regard to the welfare of the system, does not sustain the opinion of the Guardian Council; or for consulting on affairs that the leadership will refer to the Expediency Council; or other duties that are mentioned in the constitution. The leadership designates both the permanent and the transitional members of this council. Regulations that are pertinent to the Council are prepared and approved by its members themselves and approved by the leadership.