Iran reacts to death of 'pillar' of Islamic Revolution
Moderate Ayatollah Ali Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, known for his efforts to reduce tension between Iran and the West, dies.
Ayatollah Ali Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, one of the most influential politicians in Iran, died Jan. 8 at the age of 82.
It was around 7 p.m. in Tehran when doctors saw that CPR wasn’t going to bring Rafsanjani, who had suffered a heart attack, back to life.
People were shocked as they heard the news, which will shake Iranian politics. The servers of many local news agencies and news sites went down as Iranians sought more information about the state of Rafsanjani’s health. Eventually, the news of his demise was announced on state television: Ayatollah Rafsanjani, a two-time president and former chairman of the Assembly of Experts who had been serving as head of the Expediency Council, had died, taking with him a treasure of untold stories of the 1979 Islamic Revolution.
Soon after the demise of the ayatollah, Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei published a message of condolence, describing Rafsanjani as his “old friend,” “comrade” and “close colleague.”
