Hassan Rouhani facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Hujjat al-Islam
Hassan Rouhani
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حسن روحانی
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Rouhani in 2017
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| 7th President of Iran | |
| In office 3 August 2013 – 3 August 2021 |
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| Supreme Leader | Ali Khamenei |
| Vice President | Eshaq Jahangiri |
| Preceded by | Mahmoud Ahmadinejad |
| Succeeded by | Ebrahim Raisi |
| Secretary General of the Non-Aligned Movement | |
| In office 3 August 2013 – 17 September 2016 |
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| Preceded by | Mahmoud Ahmadinejad |
| Succeeded by | Nicolás Maduro |
| Chief Nuclear Negotiator of Iran | |
| In office 6 October 2003 – 15 August 2005 |
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| President | Mohammad Khatami |
| Deputy | Hossein Mousavian |
| Preceded by | Position established |
| Succeeded by | Ali Larijani |
| Secretary of the Supreme National Security Council | |
| In office 14 October 1989 – 15 August 2005 |
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| President | Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani Mohammad Khatami |
| Preceded by | Position established |
| Succeeded by | Ali Larijani |
| Member of the Assembly of Experts | |
| In office 19 February 2007 – 20 May 2024 |
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| Constituency | Tehran Province |
| Majority | 2,238,166 (53.56%) |
| In office 18 February 2000 – 19 February 2007 |
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| Constituency | Semnan Province |
| First Deputy Speaker of the Parliament | |
| In office 2 June 1992 – 26 May 2000 |
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| Preceded by | Hossein Hashemian |
| Succeeded by | Behzad Nabavi |
| Member of the Islamic Consultative Assembly | |
| In office 28 May 1984 – 27 May 2000 |
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| Constituency | Tehran, Rey, Shemiranat and Eslamshahr |
| Majority | 729,965 (58.3%; 2nd term) |
| In office 28 May 1980 – 27 May 1984 |
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| Constituency | Semnan |
| Majority | 19,017 (62.1%) |
| Advisor to the President of Iran President of Center for Strategic Research |
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| In office 5 August 1992 – 10 June 1997 |
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| President | Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani |
| Preceded by | Mohammad Mousavi Khoeiniha |
| Succeeded by | Position abolished |
| Member of Expediency Discernment Council | |
| In office 8 May 1991 – 3 August 2013 |
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| Appointed by | Ali Khamenei |
| Chairman | Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani |
| Succeeded by | Mahmoud Ahmadinejad |
| National Security Advisor of Iran to the President | |
| In office 2000–2005 |
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| President | Mohammad Khatami |
| Preceded by | Khosrow Tehrani |
| In office 1989–1997 |
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| President | Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
Hassan Fereydoun
12 November 1948 Sorkheh, Semnan Province, Imperial State of Iran |
| Political party | Moderation and Development Party (1999–present) |
| Other political affiliations |
Combatant Clergy Association (1988–present; inactive since 2009) Islamic Republican Party (1979–87) |
| Spouse |
Sahebeh Arabi
(m. 1968) |
| Children | 5 |
| Alma mater | Qom Seminary University of Tehran Glasgow Caledonian University |
| Signature |  |
| Website | Personal website (Persian) |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance |  Iran |
| Years of service | 1971–72 (conscription) 1985–91 |
| Unit | Sepah Danesh of Nishapur (1971–72) |
| Commands | Commander-in-Chief of Air Defense (1985–91) Deputy to Second-in-Command of Iran's Joint Chiefs of Staff (1988–89) |
| Battles/wars | Iran–Iraq War |
| Awards |  Order of Nasr (1st Class) Order of Fath (2nd Class) |
Hassan Rouhani (born Hassan Fereydoun on 12 November 1948) is an Iranian politician. He served as the seventh President of Iran from 2013 to 2021. He is also a lawyer, a teacher, a former diplomat, and an Islamic religious leader.
Rouhani was a member of Iran's Assembly of Experts from 1999 to 2024. He was also part of the Expediency Discernment Council from 1991 to 2013. From 1989 to 2021, he was a member of the Supreme National Security Council.
He was a deputy speaker of the Iranian Parliament (Majlis) and Secretary of the Supreme National Security Council from 1989 to 2005. In this role, he was Iran's main negotiator with European countries on its nuclear technology.
On 7 May 2013, Rouhani signed up for the presidential election. He promised to make the economy better, improve relations with Western countries, and create a "civil rights charter." He also supported the rights of different ethnic and religious groups. He won the election on 15 June and became president on 3 August 2013. Time magazine named him one of the "100 Most Influential People in the World" in 2013.
People often describe Rouhani as a moderate leader who wanted to make changes. He supported personal freedom and access to information. He also appointed women to important government roles. He improved Iran's relationships with other countries through diplomacy. Rouhani won re-election in 2017 with many votes. He was the third Iranian President to win a second term with even more support.
Even though Iran's Supreme Leader, Ali Khamenei, supported Rouhani at first, their relationship became difficult. Khamenei thought Rouhani was too soft in talks with Western countries about the Iran nuclear agreement. After his second term, Rouhani did not get another senior role from Khamenei.
Contents
Early Life and Education
Hassan Rouhani was born Hassan Fereydoun on 12 November 1948. His birthplace was Sorkheh, a town near Semnan, Iran. He grew up in a religious family. His father, Haj Asadollah Fereydoun, owned a spice shop. His father was also active against the government of Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, who was the Shah (king) of Iran. He was arrested many times before the Iranian Revolution in 1979.
Rouhani began his religious studies in 1960. He first studied at Semnan Seminary and then at the Qom Seminary in 1961. He learned from important religious scholars. He also studied modern subjects and joined the University of Tehran in 1969. He earned a degree in Judicial Law in 1972. In 1973, Rouhani served in the military in the city of Nishapur.
He continued his studies at Glasgow Caledonian University in Scotland. He earned a master's degree in Law in 1995. His thesis was about Islamic law in Iran. He then earned a PhD in Constitutional Law in 1999. His PhD thesis was about how Islamic law can be flexible, again focusing on Iran.
His birth name was Hassan Fereydoun. Later, he changed his last name to Rouhani. This name means 'spiritual' or 'cleric'. It is not clear exactly when he officially changed his name.
Personal Life
Rouhani married his cousin, Sahebeh Erabi, when he was about 20 years old. She is six years younger than him. They have four children: one son and three daughters. His wife later changed her last name to "Rouhani." She is not involved in politics.
Rouhani has three sisters and one brother. His brother, Hossein Fereydoun, is also a diplomat and politician. He has been a governor and an ambassador. He also served as a Vice Minister of Intelligence.
Political Activities Before the Revolution
As a young religious leader, Hassan Rouhani started his political work by following Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini. This was at the beginning of the Iranian Islamist movement. In 1965, he began traveling around Iran. He gave speeches against the government of Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, the Shah of Iran. During these years, he was arrested many times. He was also banned from giving public speeches.
In November 1977, Rouhani used the title "Imam" for Ayatollah Khomeini for the first time in public. Khomeini was the exiled leader of the Islamist movement at that time.
Because the Shah's intelligence agency (SAVAK) was watching him, he was advised to leave the country. Outside Iran, he gave speeches to Iranian students studying abroad. He also joined Khomeini when he arrived in France.
Political Career in the 1980s and 1990s
Early Years of the Islamic Republic
After the Iranian Revolution in 1979, Rouhani worked to make the new Islamic Republic stable. First, he helped organize the Iranian army and military bases. In 1980, he was elected to the Majlis, which is the Parliament of Iran.
He served in the Majlis for 20 years, from 1980 to 2000. During this time, he held many important roles. He was a deputy speaker of the Majlis. He also led the defense committee and the foreign policy committee.
One of his jobs after the revolution was leading the council that oversaw the Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting (IRIB) from 1980 to 1983.
Iran–Iraq War
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During the Iran–Iraq War, Rouhani was a member of the Supreme Defense Council. He was also a deputy commander of the war. He led the Iran Air Defense Force from 1986 to 1991. He was appointed as Deputy to the Second-in-Command of Iran's Joint Chiefs of Staff.
When Robert C. McFarlane, a US official, visited Tehran in May 1986, Rouhani was one of the people who talked about buying weapons. This later became known as the Iran–Contra affair.
At the end of the war, Hassan Rouhani received the second-grade Fath (Victory) Medal. He also received the first-grade Nasr Medal from Ayatollah Khamenei. These awards were for his service in the war.
After the War
In 1989, Rouhani was offered the job of Minister of Intelligence of Iran, but he turned it down.
After Iran's Constitution was changed, the Supreme National Security Council (SNSC) was created. Rouhani became the Supreme Leader's representative at this council. He was the first secretary of the SNSC for 16 years, from 1989 to 2005. He also served as a national security advisor to Presidents Hashemi and Khatami. In 1991, Rouhani joined the Expediency Discernment Council. He still holds this position and leads its Political, Defense, and Security Committee.
In the year 2000, Rouhani was elected to the Assembly of Experts from Semnan Province. He was later elected as Tehran Province's representative in 2006. He has served as the head of the political and social committee of the Assembly of Experts.
Besides his government roles, Rouhani continued his academic work. He was a member of the board of trustees for Tehran Universities. Since 1991, he has been running the Center for Strategic Research. He also edits several academic journals.
Nuclear Discussions
Rouhani was the secretary of the Supreme National Security Council (SNSC) for 16 years. He became known as the "Diplomat Sheikh" because of his important role in nuclear negotiations. This nickname was given to him by a newspaper in 2003.
His time as Iran's chief nuclear negotiator lasted for 678 days, from October 2003 to August 2005. This period began when the world learned more about Iran's nuclear energy program. The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) passed a strong resolution about Iran.
As tensions grew, a new nuclear team was formed with Hassan Rouhani in charge. This team had special powers to handle Iran's talks with the IAEA. So, on 6 October 2003, Rouhani took over Iran's nuclear case. Negotiations between Iran and three European countries began in Tehran and continued in other cities like Brussels and Paris.
Rouhani and his team focused on talking and building trust. They worked to prevent more accusations against Iran. They also tried to stop Iran's nuclear case from being sent to the United Nations Security Council. To build trust, Iran voluntarily paused some of its nuclear activities at different times.
Besides building trust and reducing international pressure, Iran also made progress in its nuclear fuel cycle. However, some people later criticized the decisions made by Rouhani's nuclear team.
After Mahmoud Ahmadinejad became president, Rouhani left his role as secretary of the Supreme National Security Council on 15 August 2005. Ali Larijani took over his position and the nuclear case. Rouhani was then appointed by the Supreme Leader as his representative at the SNSC.
Presidential Campaigns
2013 Presidential Election
Rouhani was seen as a top candidate in the June 2013 election. This was because he had moderate views but also strong ties to Iran's religious leaders. He announced he would run for president on 11 March 2013.
Before the election, former presidents Mohammad Khatami and Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani supported Rouhani. This happened after another candidate, Mohammad Reza Aref, dropped out of the race. Some news agencies suggested Rouhani might be disqualified before the election.
On 15 June 2013, the election results were announced. Rouhani won with 18,613,329 votes. His main opponent, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, received 6,077,292 votes. Rouhani did well with young people and the middle class. He even won in religious cities like Mashhad and Qom. Many people saw his victory as a sign of support for change.
2017 Presidential Election
Rouhani faced a strong challenge from Ebrahim Raisi in the 2017 Iranian presidential election. Raisi was a religious leader with very different political ideas. He talked about problems with the economy and criticized Rouhani for seeking foreign investments. He also appealed to religious conservatives.
Rouhani won the election by a large margin. This showed strong support for his efforts to improve relations with Western countries and offer more freedoms. He received 23,636,652 votes. The election had a high turnout of 73.07% of voters.
Presidency (2013–2021)
Rouhani was announced the winner the day after the election. He officially became the seventh president of Iran on 3 August 2013. He took his oath of office in the Parliament on 4 August.
Cabinet
Rouhani announced the members of his cabinet on 4 August. He appointed Eshaq Jahangiri as the first vice president. Mohammad Javad Zarif became the foreign minister. Other key appointments included the interior minister, finance minister, and defense minister.
Domestic Policy
Economy
Hassan Rouhani's economic plan focused on Iran's long-term growth. He aimed to increase people's buying power and improve the business environment. He believed that creating national wealth would help reduce poverty. His plan also included giving more help to low-income families.
Rouhani wanted to bring back the Management and Planning Organization of Iran. His economic policies also aimed to manage government support, control inflation, and speed up economic growth. He believed that high inflation harms families and wanted to reduce it. His urgent goals included controlling inflation, increasing people's buying power, and lowering unemployment.
Culture and Media
A report from March 2014 stated that internet censorship in Iran had worsened since Rouhani took office. However, it also noted that Rouhani did not have full control over this process.
Regarding internet censorship, he said, "Gone are the days when a wall could be built around the country. Today there are no more walls." He also criticized the national broadcasting company for showing unimportant foreign news while ignoring important national issues. Rouhani promised to support more internet access and other freedoms. He said, "We want the people, in their private lives, to be completely free." He added that access to information and free speech is a right for everyone.
Human and Women's Rights
Rouhani generally avoided talking about human rights issues publicly. This is because he might have limited power over these matters.
Rouhani supports women's rights. His government appointed several women as vice presidents. He also appointed Marzieh Afkham as the first female spokesperson for the foreign ministry. Rouhani had promised to create a special ministry for women. However, some women's rights activists were unsure about this idea. They worried it might separate women's issues from other important topics. It was also suggested that each ministry would have a deputy minister to focus on gender issues.
In September 2013, eleven political prisoners were released. This included the well-known human rights lawyer Nasrin Sotoudeh. This happened just before Rouhani's visit to the United States for the United Nations General Assembly.
Critics say that not much has changed in domestic policy since Rouhani became president. Iran had a high number of executions during his first 14 months in power. Nobel Peace Prize winner Shirin Ebadi has criticized Rouhani's human rights record. She mentioned the increase in executions and the continued house arrest of opposition leaders.
In 2015, Rouhani appointed Marzieh Afkham as the first female ambassador since 1979. He also appointed Saleh Adibi as the first Sunni Kurd ambassador.
Foreign Policy
Rouhani's foreign policy was influenced by conservative groups in Iran. These groups were cautious about change, even though they knew it was needed. Rouhani's main goal was to improve talks between Iran and other major world powers. This was hoped to help lift the international sanctions that were hurting Iran's economy.
In March 2015, Rouhani sent a letter to President Obama and the leaders of five other countries. He explained Iran's position in the nuclear talks. He also spoke by phone with leaders of all the countries involved in the talks, except the United States.
Nuclear Talks
Rouhani played a key role in the talks that led to the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), also known as the Iran nuclear deal. This agreement aimed to limit Iran's nuclear program in exchange for lifting international sanctions.
United Kingdom
Rouhani met with British Prime Minister David Cameron. This was the first meeting between leaders of Iran and the United Kingdom since the 1979 Islamic revolution. In February 2014, the Iranian Embassy in London was reopened, and the two countries agreed to restart diplomatic relations. The embassy was officially reopened in August 2015.
United States
Rouhani's visit to New York City in September 2013 was seen as a big step forward in Iran's relations with the United States. He had said his government was ready to talk with the United States after 32 years. Rouhani denied reports that he refused to meet with U.S. President Barack Obama. He felt more time was needed to plan such a meeting. On 27 September 2013, Rouhani had a phone call with President Obama. This was the highest-level political contact between the two countries since 1979. However, some conservatives protested Rouhani when he returned to Tehran because of this phone call.
In February 2019, Rouhani criticized the United States for trying to remove Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro from power.
On 3 January 2020, Qasem Soleimani, a powerful Iranian general, was killed by the United States. This greatly increased tensions between the two countries. Rouhani said that Iran "will take revenge."
After Joe Biden won the US presidential election in November 2020, Hassan Rouhani said it was a chance for Biden's government to "make up for previous mistakes."
Syria
It is believed that Rouhani followed the government's policy of fully supporting Bashar al-Assad, Syria's president, in the Syrian Civil War. He also supported strengthening the "Shia Crescent" that connects Lebanon, Syria, Iraq, and Iran. In his first press conference after winning the election, Rouhani said that the Syrian people should decide how to resolve the Syrian civil war.
Iraq
Rouhani has called Iran–Iraq relations "brotherly" and signed several agreements with Iraq. After the conflict in Northern Iraq in June 2014, Iran was the first country to send help to Iraq. Iran is also a key player in the fight against ISIL.
Saudi Arabia
On Iran's relationship with Saudi Arabia, Rouhani said that during a previous government, he reached a "comprehensive and strategic agreement" with the Saudis. However, this agreement was not continued by the next government.
Rouhani has criticized the military actions led by Saudi Arabia in Yemen. He said, "Don't bomb children, elderly men and women in Yemen. Attacking the oppressed will bring disgrace."
Israel
Rouhani has described Israel as "an occupier and usurper government." He said it "does injustice to the people of the region" and has caused instability with its "warmongering policies." He also called it a "cancerous tumor established by Western countries to advance their interests in the Middle East."
When asked about the Holocaust, Rouhani said that "any crime that happens in history against humanity, including the crime the Nazis created towards the Jews as well as non-Jews is reprehensible and condemnable." He added, "Whatever criminality they committed against the Jews, we condemn."
Rouhani called the peace agreement between Israel and the United Arab Emirates a "huge mistake." He warned the UAE not to allow Israel to have a strong presence in the Persian Gulf.
After the Presidency
On 24 January 2024, Rouhani announced that he had been prevented from running in the elections for the Assembly of Experts. He criticized this decision, saying that it was meant to reduce people's participation in elections.
In 2024, Rouhani also criticized the return of Iran's morality police. He was shocked by a new law about the hijab that would severely punish those who break it. He said this law does not fit with the Constitution, justice, the Qur'an, or Islamic culture.
Political Positions
Rouhani is seen as a moderate and practical politician. In 2000, a research group described him as "power-hungry." He was elected president with strong support from reformist groups. He promised to carry out their demands and bridge differences between reformists and conservatives.
During his 2017 re-election campaign, Rouhani's views became more aligned with the reformist group.
Electoral History
| Year | Election | Votes | % | Rank | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980 | Parliament | 19,017 | 62.1 | 1st | Won |
| 1984 | Parliament | 729,965 | 58.3 | 17th | Won |
| 1988 | Parliament |  412,895 |
42.1 |
Won | |
| 1992 | Parliament |  432,767 |
47 |
Won | |
| 1996 | Parliament | 465,440 |
32.5 |
Won | |
| 2000 | Parliament | 498,916 |
17.02 |
40th | Lost |
| Assembly of Experts mid-term | 120,819 | 47.56 | 1st | Won | |
| 2006 | Assembly of Experts | 844,190 | 7th | Won | |
| 2013 | President | 18,613,329 | 50.88 | 1st | Won |
| 2016 | Assembly of Experts | 2,238,166 |
49.72 |
3rd | Won |
| 2017 | President | 23,636,652 |
57.14 |
1st | Won |
See also
In Spanish: Hasán Rohaní para niños
- Muhammad Kazim Khurasani
- Mirza Husayn Tehrani
- Abdallah Mazandarani
- Mirza Ali Aqa Tabrizi
- Mirza Sayyed Mohammad Tabatabai
- Seyyed Abdollah Behbahani
- Fazlullah Nouri
