Mansour Rouhani (

Persian Persian may refer to: * People and things from Iran, historically called ''Persia'' in the English language ** Persians, the majority ethnic group in Iran, not to be conflated with the Iranic peoples ** Persian language, an Iranian language of the ...

: 1922–11 April 1979) was an

Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) and also known as Persia, is a country in West Asia. It borders Iraq to the west, Turkey, Azerbaijan, and Armenia to the northwest, the Caspian Sea to the north, Turkmenistan to the nort ...

ian politician who held several government posts during the reign of

Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi Mohammad Reza Pahlavi (26 October 1919 – 27 July 1980) was the last Shah of Iran, ruling from 1941 to 1979. He succeeded his father Reza Shah and ruled the Imperial State of Iran until he was overthrown by the Iranian Revolution, which ...

. He was one of the politicians who were murdered after the

Islamic revolution The Iranian Revolution (, ), also known as the 1979 Revolution, or the Islamic Revolution of 1979 (, ) was a series of events that culminated in the overthrow of the Pahlavi dynasty in 1979. The revolution led to the replacement of the Im ...

in 1979.

Biography

Rouhani's father followed the

Baháʼí Faith The Baháʼí Faith is a religion founded in the 19th century that teaches the Baháʼí Faith and the unity of religion, essential worth of all religions and Baháʼí Faith and the unity of humanity, the unity of all people. Established by ...

whereas his mother was a

Muslim Muslims () are people who adhere to Islam, a Monotheism, monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God ...

. On 7 March 1964 Rouhani was named as the minister of water and power in the

cabinet Cabinet or The Cabinet may refer to: Furniture * Cabinetry, a box-shaped piece of furniture with doors and/or drawers * Display cabinet, a piece of furniture with one or more transparent glass sheets or transparent polycarbonate sheets * Filin ...

led by

Prime Minister A prime minister or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. A prime minister is not the head of state, but r ...

Hasan Ali Mansour. Rouhani served in the same post in the first cabinet of Prime Minister

Amir-Abbas Hoveyda Amir-Abbas Hoveyda (; 18 February 1919 – 7 April 1979) was an Iranian economist and politician who served as Prime Minister of Iran from 27 January 1965 to 7 August 1977. He was the longest serving prime minister in Iran's history. He also ...

from 26 January 1965. He also served as the minister of agriculture in the next cabinet of Amir Abbas Hoveyda. He was reappointed to the post on 13 September 1971. Rouhani and many other leading figures close to the Shah were removed from the office in Fall 1978 shortly after the riots and protests occurred in rural parts of Iran. On 13 September 1978 Rouhani was arrested. He was in prison when a regime change took place in Iran in February 1979. He was tried by the newly established

Islamic Revolutionary Court Islamic Revolutionary Court (), also known as the Revolutionary Tribunal (''Dadgahha-e Enqelab''Bakhash, Shaul, ''Reign of the Ayatollahs'', Basic Books, 1984, p.59-61) is a special system of courts in the Islamic Republic of Iran designed to try ...

led by religious judge

Sadegh Khalkhali Mohammed Sadeq Givi Khalkhali (; 27 July 1926 – 26 November 2003) was an Iranian Shia cleric who is said to have "brought to his job as Chief Justice of the revolutionary courts a relish for summary execution" that earned him a reputation ...

. Rouhani was charged with treason and corruption on earth and sentenced to death. Rasoul Sadr Ameli, an Iranian journalist worked for ''

Ettela'at ''Ettela'at'' () is a Persian-language daily newspaper of record published in Tehran, Iran. It is among the oldest publications in the country, and the oldest running Persian daily newspaper in the world. The paper has a conservative stance, a ...

'', reported that when Rouhani learned these claims, he asked the judge how he engaged in war with God. Khalkhali answered him: "You are a Baháʼí." Rouhani was also accused of having destroyed agriculture during his terms as minister of agriculture and minister of water and power. Rouhani was 57 years old when he was killed by the revolutionaries on 11 April 1979. The same day ten other senior figures, including former foreign minister

Abbas Ali Khalatbari Abbas Ali Khalatbari (; 1912 – 11 April 1979), also known as Abbas Ali Khal'atbari, was an Iranian diplomat, who served as the minister of foreign affairs from 1971 to 1978. He was among the significant diplomats who shaped the foreign relatio ...

, were also executed.

Personal life

His wife was Parvin Rouhani who left Iran before or after the Islamic revolution in 1979 and settled in the United States. The family properties were confiscated by the Islamic government during that period. Rouhani's son married an American woman, and they both left Iran in 1978.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rouhani, Mansour 20th-century Iranian politicians 1922 births 1979 deaths Agriculture ministers of Iran Iranian Bahá'ís People executed by Iran by firing squad Politicians executed during the Iranian Revolution