TEHRAN: Registration for next month’s Iranian presidential election closed on Saturday, with more than 1,600 hopefuls signing up, including a last-minute entry by Tehran Mayor Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf.
The 55-year-old conservative mayor had given mixed signals about whether he would make a third bid for the presidency, but showed up at the Interior Ministry just before the deadline for registration.
There was also a surprise last-minute entry from First Vice President Eshaq Jahangiri, a close confidante of President Hassan Rouhani who registered on Friday.
It is assumed Jahangiri, a 60-year-old reformist, is running to offer an alternative in case Rouhani is disqualified by the Guardian Council, which vets the candidates. Others speculate he could be trying to raise his profile ahead of a more concerted bid in 2021.
“Rouhani and I are side-by-side,” Jahangiri told reporters.
Rouhani, a politically moderate cleric who has stabilized the economy and overseen a partial rapprochement with the West, is widely seen as the man to beat, although there is little polling in Iran and past elections have thrown up major surprises.
His main challenger is considered to be hard-line cleric and judge Ebrahim Raisi, 56, who also signed up on Friday.
In total, 1,636 people registered, including 137 women.
Almost all will be disqualified over the coming fortnight by the Guardian Council, which is controlled by religious conservatives.
The council has never permitted a woman to run.
Around half a dozen candidates are normally approved, with the campaign set to start on April 28 and the vote on May 19.
Ghalibaf was the runner-up to Rouhani in 2013. He is a war veteran, former Revolutionary Guards commander and police chief, who was picked by a grouping of conservatives as one of their top choices last week, along with Raisi.
With much of the focus this year on Iran’s stagnant economy, he told reporters at the registration that he would create five million jobs and more than double Iran’s revenues.
The biggest surprise from this week’s registration was the appearance of former hard-line President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, 60, who shocked everyone by signing up against the advice of supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
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Iran election sign-up closes with mayor’s last-minute entry
Iran election sign-up closes with mayor’s last-minute entry
Lebanon says France to host conference to support army
- Lebanon said Wednesday that a conference in support of the country’s army as it seeks to disarm militant group Hezbollah would take place in Paris on March 5
BEIRUT: Lebanon said Wednesday that a conference in support of the country’s army as it seeks to disarm militant group Hezbollah would take place in Paris on March 5.
The announcement follows recent promises of support to the military, which lacks funds, equipment and technical expertise.
Presidency spokeswoman Najat Charafeddine said President Joseph Aoun met French envoy Jean-Yves Le Drian, Saudi envoy Yazid bin Farhan and ambassadors including from the US, Egypt and Qatar, discussing preparations for “a conference to support the Lebanese army and internal security forces.”
“It was decided to hold the conference in Paris on March 5, to be opened by French President Emmanuel Macron,” she said at the presidential palace.
Under US pressure and fearing expanded Israeli strikes, Lebanon has committed to disarming the Iran-backed Hezbollah, which was badly weakened in more than a year of hostilities with Israel that largely ended in late 2024.
Last week, Lebanon’s army said it had completed the first phase of its plan to disarm the group, covering the area south of the Litani river, around 30 kilometers (20 miles) from the Israeli border.
A plan for the disarmament north of the Litani is to be presented to cabinet next month.
Israel, which accuses Hezbollah or rearming, has criticized the army’s progress as insufficient, while Hezbollah has rejected calls to surrender its weapons.
Lebanon’s army has dismantled tunnels and other military infrastructure belonging to Hezbollah near the Israeli border in recent months, seizing weapons and ammunition, despite its limited capacities.
Despite the ceasefire, Israel has kept up regular strikes on Lebanon, usually saying it is targeting Hezbollah, and has maintained troops in five south Lebanon areas it deems strategic.
Last month, talks with international envoys in Paris touched on the Lebanese army’s needs, while its chief agreed to document its progress in disarming Hezbollah.
The announcement follows recent promises of support to the military, which lacks funds, equipment and technical expertise.
Presidency spokeswoman Najat Charafeddine said President Joseph Aoun met French envoy Jean-Yves Le Drian, Saudi envoy Yazid bin Farhan and ambassadors including from the US, Egypt and Qatar, discussing preparations for “a conference to support the Lebanese army and internal security forces.”
“It was decided to hold the conference in Paris on March 5, to be opened by French President Emmanuel Macron,” she said at the presidential palace.
Under US pressure and fearing expanded Israeli strikes, Lebanon has committed to disarming the Iran-backed Hezbollah, which was badly weakened in more than a year of hostilities with Israel that largely ended in late 2024.
Last week, Lebanon’s army said it had completed the first phase of its plan to disarm the group, covering the area south of the Litani river, around 30 kilometers (20 miles) from the Israeli border.
A plan for the disarmament north of the Litani is to be presented to cabinet next month.
Israel, which accuses Hezbollah or rearming, has criticized the army’s progress as insufficient, while Hezbollah has rejected calls to surrender its weapons.
Lebanon’s army has dismantled tunnels and other military infrastructure belonging to Hezbollah near the Israeli border in recent months, seizing weapons and ammunition, despite its limited capacities.
Despite the ceasefire, Israel has kept up regular strikes on Lebanon, usually saying it is targeting Hezbollah, and has maintained troops in five south Lebanon areas it deems strategic.
Last month, talks with international envoys in Paris touched on the Lebanese army’s needs, while its chief agreed to document its progress in disarming Hezbollah.
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