Habibollah Asgaroladi

Habibollah Asgaroladi
Asgaroladi in 2012
Minister of Commerce
In office 3 November 1980 – 12 July 1984
Prime Minister	Mohammad-Javad Bahonar Mohammad-Reza Mahdavi Mir-Hossein Mousavi
Preceded by	Kazam Pour-Ardabili
Succeeded by	Hossein Abedi Jafari
Member of the Parliament of Iran
In office 28 May 1980 – 3 November 1980
Constituency	Tehran, Rey and Shemiranat
Majority	764,338 (46.7%)
Personal details
Born	(1932-01-03)3 January 1932 Tehran, Iran
Died	5 November 2013(2013-11-05) (aged 81) Tehran, Iran
Political party	Islamic Coalition Party

Habibollah Asgaroladi Mosalman (Persian: حبيب‌الله عسگراولادی مسلمان‎‎; 3 January 1932 – 5 November 2013) was a leading senior Iranian politician who was the leader of Islamic Coalition Party, a highly influential conservative political party in Iran.^[1] He was also a two time presidential candidate, first in July 1981 and next in 1985. During the presidential elections in 1981, in which he ran for the presidency, an attempt was made to assassinate him outside his home in Iran Street, but this failed and resulted in his bodyguard being killed but Asgaroladi himself escaped largely unhurt.

Career and activities

Asgaroladi was born to a wealthy merchant family in Damavand. His ancestors were Jews who converted to Shia islam^{[2][3][4][5][6]} Asgaroladi is a senior member of Iran's Expediency Council. He spent many years at the forefront of the Iranian cabinet, serving as both Secretary of State for Social Security, Minister for Economy, Trade and Commerce as well as heading up the Homeland Security Agency and intelligence services in Iran. He ran in the 1981 and 1985 Presidential elections.^[1] An attempt was made on his life in a failed assassination attempt in 1981.^[7] Asgaroladi was a prominent member of Imam Khomeini's inner circle and returned to Iran from Neuphle-le-Chateau with Araghi & Beheshti. Since the Islamic Revolution of 1979, he was chosen by Imam Khomeini to be the founding father of the Imam Khomeini Relief Foundation, the largest social welfare branch of the government in Iran. Some unofficial reports include him among the wealthiest individuals in Iran with a net worth of several billion dollars. Several members of the Asgaroladi family have been featured in the Fortune 500 ("Millionaire Mullahs" article), with Asadollah Asgaroladi possessing an estimated wealth of over USD $9 billion. The Asgaroladis are now amongst the wealthiest families in Iran with commercial interests in real estate, banking, healthcare and exports of dried fruits, nuts, caviar and saffron.^[8]

Asgaroladi published his autobiography in 2012 and was presented with an award by Ali Larijani, speaker of the Iranian Parliament. He died on 5 November 2013 in Tehran's Dey Hospital after was hospitalized for more than two months. His funeral was attended by the Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei, President Hassan Rouhani, Mohsen Rafiqdoost, Ali Larijani and many other senior government officials. Asgaroladi was remembered for his devotion to helping the poor through the Relief Foundation and for being a highly respected Statesman both before and after the Islamic Revolution.^[9][10]

Related Pages

• Asadollah Asgaroladi

References