Mahmoud Hashemi Shahroudi, a grand ayatollah who headed Iran's judiciary during fierce crackdowns on dissidents, journalists and activists, died on Monday at the age of 70 according to the state news agency Irna.
Mr Shahroudi was a student of Iran's revolutionary founder Ruhollah Khomeini who went on to hold some of the country's most powerful positions.
At the time of his death he was head of the Expediency Council and a member of the 12-man Guardian Council – two important institutions for shaping legislation and vetting election candidates.
He was also deputy head of the Assembly of Experts which has the power to choose the successor to Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei – a position to which Mr Shahroudi himself was occasionally linked.
Mr Shahroudi had not been seen in public for several months, and there were reports last year that he had surgery for an unspecified cancer in Germany.
A German MP filed a complaint against Mr Shahroudi during his stay, calling for him to be charged with crimes against humanity, but a judge found no grounds to hold him.
Mr Shahroudi headed the judiciary between 1999 and 2009 – a period that saw hundreds of executions and a crackdown on activists, dissidents and the reformist media.
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His tenure concluded with the mass protests over allegations of vote rigging in the 2009 presidential election, which led to thousands of people being arrested and allegations of severe abuse in prisons.
Some other measures marked him as a relative moderate within the judiciary, particularly his moratorium on stoning as a method of execution which other clerics saw as permissible under Sharia.
But the prosecution in 2001 of reformist MPs – despite their parliamentary immunity – was heavily criticised by the government of the time.
Mr Shahroudi was born in Najaf in Iraq on August 18, 1948, and met Khomeini when the latter was exiled to Iraq in the 1960s.
He fled to Kuwait and then Iran after Saddam Hussein cracked down on Shiite clerics after the 1979 Iranian revolution, the conservative Tasnim news agency said in its obituary.
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Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
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Essentials
The flights
Emirates and Etihad fly direct from the UAE to Los Angeles, from Dh4,975 return, including taxes. The flight time is 16 hours. Alaska Airlines, United Airlines, Delta Air Lines, Aeromexico and Southwest all fly direct from Los Angeles to San Jose del Cabo from Dh1,243 return, including taxes. The flight time is two-and-a-half hours.
The trip
Lindblad Expeditions National Geographic’s eight-day Whales Wilderness itinerary costs from US$6,190 (Dh22,736) per person, twin share, including meals, accommodation and excursions, with departures in March and April 2018.
Punchy appearance
Roars of support buoyed Mr Johnson in an extremely confident and combative appearance
6.30pm Meydan Classic Trial US$100,000 (Turf) 1,400m
Winner Bella Fever, Dane O’Neill (jockey), Mike de Kock (trainer).
7.05pm Handicap $135,000 (T) 1,400m
Winner Woven, Harry Bentley, David Simcock.
7.40pm UAE 2000 Guineas Group Three $250,000 (Dirt) 1,600m
Winner Fore Left, William Buick, Doug O’Neill.
8.15pm Dubai Sprint Listed Handicap $175,000 (T) 1,200m
Winner Rusumaat, Dane O’Neill, Musabah Al Muhairi.
8.50pm Al Maktoum Challenge Round-2 Group Two $450,000 (D) 1,900m
Winner Benbatl, Christophe Soumillon, Saeed bin Suroor.
9.25pm Handicap $135,000 (T) 1,800m
Winner Art Du Val, William Buick, Charlie Appleby.
10pm Handicap $135,000 (T) 1,400m
Winner Beyond Reason, William Buick, Charlie Appleby.
Skewed figures
In the village of Mevagissey in southwest England the housing stock has doubled in the last century while the number of residents is half the historic high. The village's Neighbourhood Development Plan states that 26% of homes are holiday retreats. Prices are high, averaging around £300,000, £50,000 more than the Cornish average of £250,000. The local average wage is £15,458.
