Iran's First Supreme Leader's Ancestors Lived In This Indian Village
Gripped in a bitter flareup in the Middle East crisis, the Islamic regime in Iran has vowed not to yield to US pressure and Israeli missiles. But it is little known that the founder of the regime, a high-ranking cleric in Tehran, traces his roots to a nondescript village in India.
Ayatollah Ruhollah Musavi Khomenei spearheaded the Islamic Revolution in Iran and went on to become its first Supreme Leader in 1979. His grandfather, Syed Ahmed Musavi, was born in Kintoor village near Barabanki in the early 19th century.
Kintoor has been a seat of Shia scholarship.
He later moved to Najaf in Iraq and finally settled in Khomein city of Iran in 1834. Here began his family's quest for religious and political power. Musavi retained his title 'Hindi' that is also present in Iranian records and bears a testament to his ancestry.
Musavi is believed to be the driving force behind Khomenei's interest in spirituality that changed the polity of Iran a century later.
Who was Ayatollah Khomenei?
Ayatollah Khomeini was the leader of Iran's Islamic Revolution in 1979. He deposed Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, the pro-Western former Shah of Iran, in 1979 and established the Islamic Republic of Iran. He went on to become the first Supreme Leader of Iran.
He died in 1989.
Khomenei is believed to be a humble leader who lived in a modest single-story house in Tehran even after rising to the highest political and religious position in Iran. His house stands bereft of any grandeur even today, in stark contrast to the house of Pahlavi.
The house was offered to him by Sayyid Mahdi Imam Jamah for free, but Khamenei still paid him a thousand riyals. It stands out for its Egyptian decorations and boasts two small rooms, with a passenger later being built to connect it to the hall where he met his supporters and gave sermons.
The Imam likely never wanted people to spend money on his luxury. Supporters had offered to put tiles on the walls of his house, but he had refused public money for his own house's decorations.
Khomenei's Successor
Khomenei's successor, Ali Khamenei, now leads Iran. In a televised address yesterday, he declared that Tehran will not yield despite the US pressure and Israeli missiles. His assertion came as Iran and Israel traded missiles for the seventh straight day.
Israel sees Iran as an existential threat and has vowed not to allow Iran to achieve nuclear power. Iran, however, insists its nuclear program is for peaceful purposes only. In recent years, Tehran has been enriching uranium to up to 60% purity - near weapons-grade levels of 90%.
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