National security council chief Ali Larijani has emerged as one of Iran’s most dominant figures following the assassination of the supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. .
He will not succeed Khamenei because, although a high-ranking cleric, he is not a Marja - a figure who inspires respect and emulation from Shia Muslims. However, he is a powerful political presence.
For years, Larijani has embodied the conciliatory wing of Iran’s ruling elite – a scholar of Immanuel Kant and a veteran negotiator of nuclear accords with the West.
Then, earlier this week, the 67‑year‑old adopted a markedly different tone.
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In a post on X, he stated: “As in the past 300 years, Iran did not start this war, and our brave armed forces have not engaged in attacks except in self-defence. We will fiercely defend our 6,000-year-old civilisation regardless of the costs and make the enemies sorry for their miscalculation.”
He added: “Iran, unlike the United States, has prepared itself for a long war.”
Larijani is a former officer in the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps who has been security council secretary since 2025.
He was parliamentary speaker from 2008 to 2020, after which he was appointed to the “expediency discernment council” that advises the supreme leader. He had previously served on the council from 1997 to 2008.
Larijani finished sixth in the 2005 presidential election and filed for candidacy in the 2021 and 2024 presidential elections but was disqualified.
He was born in the Iraqi Shia holy city of Najaf in 1958 into a prominent family. His father was a senior cleric, Ayatollah Mirza Hashem Amoli, who was exiled by Iran’s ruler Reza Shah Pahlavi, but eventually returned to Tehran.
Ali Larijani has a well-rounded scientific and literary education. He graduated from Qom seminary, a renowned Shia institute of learning and the largest in Iran. He holds a bachelor’s degree in computer science and mathematics from a technological university and a master’s degree and PhD in western philosophy from the University of Tehran.
Larijani served as deputy minister in labour and social affairs, and information and communications technology. In 1994, he was appointed head of broadcasting, and a decade later became security adviser to Khamenei.
In 2005, Larijani was appointed secretary of the security council, which helps to draft nuclear and other policies. As chief nuclear negotiator, Iranian analysts said he adopted a more pragmatic approach than the president.
[ Iran executes Khamenei’s plan to spread regional warOpens in new window ]
He went on to win a parliamentary seat in 2008, representing Qom and became speaker. Larijani was re-elected in 2012 and 2016 when he became speaker for a second time.
In 2025 US president Donald Trump called for a return to nuclear negotiations but Khamenei dismissed the offer as an effort to impose US conditions on Iran.
Larijani said Iran had no choice but to develop nuclear weapons if attacked by the US, Israel or their allies. On June 22nd, the US and Israel bombed Iran’s nuclear facilities at Nantaz, Fordow and Isfahan, devastating Tehran’s nuclear programme.
