Mesbah-Yazdi

Mesbah-Yazdi wanted both to retain control over the street and win the argument.

Let the Swords Encircle Me Scott Peterson 2010

“The government follows its goals by force of arms,” against those who question the path of the nezam, said Mesbah-Yazdi, a cudgel of a man with a rounded nose and eyeglasses who gives off the air of an errant uncle.109 “Those who violate the law-based regulations will be forced to accept them with the help of law enforcement organizations.”

Let the Swords Encircle Me Scott Peterson 2010

It was Ayatollah Mesbah-Yazdi who helped spearhead the revitalization of the hard-liners, a project that the wealthy and influential cleric took on with “energy and strategic foresight,” notes historian Ali Ansari.16 Ridding Iran of the “heresy of reform,” as Mesbah-Yazdi saw it, would take time:

Let the Swords Encircle Me Scott Peterson 2010

Another defendant described listening to a speech of Mesbah-Yazdi on a cassette, about how to deal with sinners.

Let the Swords Encircle Me Scott Peterson 2010

During the trials, the killers did not hide the fact of the heavy influence of Mesbah-Yazdi.

Let the Swords Encircle Me Scott Peterson 2010

This text drawn from “Rule and Legitimacy,” part of a collection of Mesbah-Yazdi writings and opinions called Questions and Answers, vol. 3, 14th ed.

Let the Swords Encircle Me Scott Peterson 2010

Mesbah-Yazdi was explicit that night, and said, “If one calls somebody to virtue and warned him against committing a sin three times but that person still fails to fulfill his commitments, then his blood may be freely shed.”

Let the Swords Encircle Me Scott Peterson 2010

Ansar and Ahmadinejad shared discipleship of some of the most extreme ultraright clerics, such as Guardian Council chief Ayatollah Ahmad Jannati, and Ayatollah Mohammad Taghi Mesbah-Yazdi, who approved of violence against opponents.

Let the Swords Encircle Me Scott Peterson 2010

Not content with their current level of influence, according to Stanford professor Abbas Milani, Ahmadinejad and Mesbah-Yazdi may even band together and "try to organize a majority in the Assembly of Experts to remove Khamenei -- and elevate Mesbah-Yazdi to supreme leader."

Religion Versus Reality 2007

No friend of democracy, according to Vali Nasr at the Naval Postgraduate School in Monterey, California, Mesbah-Yazdi said recently that with a true Islamic government at hand, Iran has no need for future elections.

Religion Versus Reality 2007