|
'''Reactance''' may refer to:
{{Infobox Officeholder
|name = Mahmoud Ahmadinejad<br><small>محمود احمدینژاد</small>
|image = Mahmoud Ahmadinejad 2009.jpg
|caption =
|office = 6th [[President of Iran]]
|1blankname = Supreme Leader
|1namedata = [[Ali Khamenei]]
|vicepresident = [[Parviz Davoodi]]<br>[[Mohammad-Reza Rahimi]]
|term_start = 3 August 2005
|term_end =
|predecessor = [[Mohammad Khatami]]
|successor =
|office2 = [[List of mayors of Tehran|Mayor of Tehran]]
|term_start2 = 20 June 2003
|term_end2 = 3 August 2005
|deputy2 = Ali Saeedlou
|predecessor2 = [[Mohammad-Hassan Malekmadani]]
|successor2 = [[Mohammad-Bagher Ghalibaf]]
|office3 = Governor of [[Ardabil Province|Ardabil]]
|term_start3 = 1 May 1993
|term_end3 = 28 June 1997
|predecessor3 = [[Hossein Taheri]] <small>(East Azerbaijan)</small>
|successor3 = Javad Negarandeh
|birth_date = {{birth date and age|1956|10|28|df=y}}
|birth_place = [[Aradan, Iran|Aradan]], [[Pahlavi dynasty|Iran]]
|death_date =
|death_place =
|party = [[Alliance of Builders of Islamic Iran|Alliance of Builders]] <br><small>(2003–present)</small>
|otherparty = [[Islamic Society of Engineers]] <small>(1990–2005)</small>
|spouse = Azam Farahi <small>(1981–present)</small><ref name=ap>{{cite news |title=Iran's first lady makes rare speech at Rome summit |url=http://www.foxnews.com/world/2009/11/15/irans-lady-makes-rare-public-appearance-rome-forum/ |agency=Associated Press|publisher=[[Fox News]] |date=2009-11-15 |accessdate=2011-06-01}}</ref>
|children = Mehdi<br>Alireza<br>Fatemeh
|residence = [[Sa'dabad Palace]] <small>(Official)</small><br>[[Gisha]] <small>(Private)</small>
|alma_mater = [[Iran University of Science and Technology]]
|profession = [[Civil engineer]]
|religion = [[Usuli]] [[Twelver]] [[Shia Islam]]
|signature = Mahmoud Ahmadinejad signature.svg
|signature_alt = Signature of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad
|website = [http://www.president.ir Official website]
}}
{{Contains Perso-Arabic text}}
'''Mahmoud Ahmadinejad''' ({{lang-fa|محمود احمدینژاد}}, ''Mahmūd Ahmadinezhād'' {{IPA-fa|mæhˈmuːd(-e) æhmædiːneˈʒɒːd||Mahmoud Ahmadinejad Clean.ogg}},<ref>The -{{IPA|[e]}} is the [[Izāfa]], which is a grammatical marker linking two words together. It is not indicated in writing, and is not part of the name itself, but is used when a first and last name are used together.</ref><ref>[http://www.forvo.com/search/محمود%20احمدی%E2%80%8Cنژاد/ Pronunciations for محمود احمدینژاد]</ref><ref>[http://books.google.com/books?id=0g8n9mmnjKgC&lpg=PA145&ots=kXd-YrfWal&dq=compound%20noun%20persian%20stress&pg=PA145#v=snippet&q=compound%20noun%20persian%20stress&f=false Persian Grammar], p. 145: ''. . . stress is word-final in simple, derived, and compound nouns and adjectives . . .'' {{dead link|date=February 2011}}</ref> {{IPA-en|ɑːkməˈdɪnɨʒɒd|lang}}; born 28 October 1956<ref name=EABTDO >{{cite web | title = Ahmedinejad: Rose and Thorn | publisher = The Diplomatic Observer | url = http://www.diplomaticobserver.com/news_read.asp?id=1871 | accessdate = 2009-07-27 }}</ref><ref name=EABFB >{{cite web | title = Mahmoud Ahmedinejad on Facebook | publisher = [[Facebook]] | date = 2001-07-24 | url = http://www.facebook.com/pages/Mahmud-Ahmedinejad/8613283977?v=info&viewas=0 | accessdate = 2009-07-27 }}</ref>) is the [[List of Presidents of Iran|sixth and current]] [[President of Iran|President]] of the [[Iran|Islamic Republic of Iran]], and the main political leader of the [[Alliance of Builders of Islamic Iran]], a coalition of conservative political groups in the country.
An engineer and teacher from a poor background,<ref name="bioIR">[http://www.president.ir/eng/ahmadinejad/bio/ Biography of H.E. Dr. Ahmadi Nejad, Honourable President of Islamic Republic of Iran]. Retrieved 27-01-2008. {{Wayback | url=http://www.president.ir/eng/ahmadinejad/bio/ | date=20080103231639 }}</ref> Ahmadinejad joined the [[Office for Strengthening Unity]]<ref name="bioIC" >{{cite web | title = Mahmoud Ahmadinejad | publisher = Iran Chamber Society
| url = http://www.iranchamber.com/history/mahmadinejad/mahmoud_ahmadinejad.php | accessdate = 2009-07-28 }}</ref> after the [[Islamic Revolution]]. Appointed a provincial governor, he was removed after the election of President [[Mohammad Khatami]] and returned to teaching.<ref name="JLAnderson">{{cite web|last=Lee |first=Jon |url=http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2009/04/13/090413fa_fact_anderson |title=Can Iran Change? High stakes in Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s reelection campaign |publisher=Newyorker.com |date=2009-01-07 |accessdate=2011-06-18}}</ref> Tehran's council elected him mayor in 2003.<ref name="bioGS">{{cite web|author=John Pike |url=http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/world/iran/ahmadinejad.htm |title=President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad |publisher=Globalsecurity.org |date= |accessdate=2011-06-18}}</ref> He took a religious hard line, reversing reforms of previous moderate mayors.<ref name=entekhab2006>[http://entekhab.ir/display/?ID=2648 "Ahamd Bozorgian (MP): 'The Separation of men and women's elevators is an advantageous policy. It would help to grow.'"] Entekhab News. Retrieved 31-08-2006. {{dead link|date=February 2011}}</ref> His 2005 presidential campaign, supported by the [[Alliance of Builders of Islamic Iran]], garnered 62% of the [[runoff election]] votes, and he became President on 3 August 2005.<ref name="Voice Of America">{{cite news | first= | last= | coauthors= |authorlink= | title=Ahmadinejad Sworn in as Iran's New President | date=2005-08-06 | publisher=Voice Of America | url =http://www.voanews.com/english/archive/2005-08/2005-08-06-voa8.cfm | work = | pages = | accessdate = 2008-12-23 | language = }}</ref><ref name="Iran hardliner becomes president">{{cite news| url = http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/4740441.stm| title = Iran hardliner becomes president| accessdate = 2006-12-06| date = 3 August 2005| publisher = BBC}}</ref> His second presidency term ends on August 3, 2013. He is not eligible to run for another term under the current [[Iranian constitution]].
* [[Electrical reactance]], the opposition to a change in voltage due to capacitance (capacitive reactance) or in current due to inductance (inductive reactance); the imaginary component of AC impedance
Ahmadinejad is a controversial figure both within [[Iran]] and internationally. He has been criticized domestically for his economic lapses and disregard for [[human rights]]. He launched a [[2007 Gas Rationing Plan in Iran|gas rationing plan]] in 2007 to reduce the country's fuel consumption, and cut the interest rates that private and public banking facilities could charge.<ref name="InterestRates">{{cite news|author=Robert Tait in Tehran |url=http://www.guardian.co.uk/iran/story/0,,2087915,00.html |title=Iran interest rate cut sparks panic selling |publisher=Guardian |date= 2007-05-25|accessdate=2011-06-18 |___location=London}}</ref><ref name="MPO">[http://www.bbc.co.uk/persian/iran/story/2007/07/070710_ka-mpo.shtmlسازمان مدیریت و" برنامه ریزی منحل ش"] BBC Persian. Retrieved 29-07-2007. {{dead link|date=February 2011}}</ref><ref>{{cite web| url = http://www.tehrantimes.com/index_View.asp?code=175959| title = Assembly of Experts to study economic reform plan: Rafsanjani| accessdate = 2008-08-23| date = 23 August 2008|language=Persian| publisher = Tehran Times}}</ref> He supports [[Iran nuclear program|Iran's nuclear energy program]]. His [[Iran presidential election, 2009|election to a second term in 2009]] was widely disputed<ref>{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/8134904.stm |title=Iran clerics defy election ruling |publisher=BBC News |date=2009-07-05 |accessdate=2011-06-18}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/persian/iran/2009/07/090704_op_brief_majma_qom.shtml |title=Is this government legitimate? (BBC Persian) |publisher=Bbc.co.uk |date= |accessdate=2011-06-18}}</ref> and caused widespread [[2009–2010 Iranian election protests|protests domestically]] and drew significant international criticism.<ref>{{cite web|last=Landry |first=Carole |url=http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5jSWPwBGmOByDmvG6OPfqesxJ2O7Q |title=G8 calls on Iran to halt election violence |publisher=Google.com |date=2009-06-25 |accessdate=2011-06-18}}</ref> In 2011 the presence of a so-called "deviant current" among his aides and supporters led to the arrest of several of them.<ref>[http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2011/jun/29/mahmoud-ahmadinejad-opponents-cabinet Mahmoud Ahmadinejad warns opponents against detaining ministers], Saeed Kamali Dehghan| guardian.co.uk| 29 June 2011</ref>
* [[Gyrator–capacitor model#Magnetic reactance|Magnetic reactance]], a similar effect in magnetism
* [[Reactance (psychology)]], an emotional reaction to pressure or persuasion that results in the strengthening or adoption of a contrary belief
==Early lifeSee also ==
* [[Reactants]], chemical reagents
Ahmadinejad was born near [[Garmsar]] in the village of [[Aradan, Iran|Aradan]], in [[Semnan province]]. His father, Ahmad, was an ironworker, [[grocer]], [[barber]], [[blacksmith]] and religious [[Shia Islam|Shi'a]] who taught the [[Qur'an]].<ref name="bookref1">{{cite book|last=Melman|first=Yossi|authorlink=|coauthors=Meir Javedanfar|title=The Nuclear Sphinx of Tehran: Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and the State of Iran|publisher=Basic Books|year=2007|___location=|pages=1–3|month=|url=|isbn=978-0-7867-1887-0}}</ref> His mother, Khanom, was a [[Sayyid|Seyyede]], an [[honorific]] title given to those believed to be direct bloodline descendants of the Islamic prophet [[Muhammad]].<ref name="bookref1"/> Ahmadinejad's father changed his name from "Saborjhian"<ref name="bioTait" >{{cite news | author=Robert Tait | title = A humble beginning helped to form Iran's new hard man | publisher = The Guardian | date = 2005-07-02 | url = http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2005/jul/02/iran.roberttait | accessdate = 2009-07-27| ___location=London}}</ref> or "Sabaghian"<ref>Kasra Naji says that the name was 'Sabaghian,' which means 'dye-masters' in Persian; Kasra Naji. "Ahmadinejad: The Secret History of Iran's Radical Leader". University of California Press (2008), p. 4</ref> when Ahmadinejad was four years old to avoid discrimination when the family moved to Tehran, as the rural name indicated a lowly social standing. Sabor is Persian for thread painter,<ref>In 2009 some media reports claimed that Sabourjian is a common Iranian Jewish name, and that "sabour" is the name for the Jewish [[Tallit]] shawl in Persia (''[[Daily Telegraph]]'', 3 October 2009, [http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/middleeast/iran/6256173/Mahmoud-Ahmadinejad-revealed-to-have-Jewish-past.html Mahmoud Ahmadinejad revealed to have Jewish past]); the claim is disputed, with experts saying that neither claim is correct (Meir Javedanfar, ''[[The Guardian]]'', 5 October 2009, {{WebCite|url=http://www.webcitation.org/5kG0IJYF9|date =2009-10-03}}</ref> a once common occupation within the Semnan carpet industry. Ahmadinejad was chosen as it means from the race of Ahmad, one of the names given to Muhammad.
* [[Reactivity (disambiguation)]]
{{disambig}}
In 1976, Ahmadinejad took Iran's national university entrance contests. According to his autobiography, he was ranked 132nd out of 400,000 participants that year,<ref name=EABBBC20060814 >{{cite news | title = Iran's president launches weblog | publisher = BBC News | date = 2006-08-14| url = http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/4790005.stm| accessdate = 2009-07-28 }}</ref> and soon enrolled in the Iran University of Science and Technology (IUST) as an undergraduate student of civil engineering. He earned his [[PhD]] (1997) in transportation engineering and planning from [[Iran University of Science and Technology]], located at Tehran, when he was the Mayor of Ardabil Province, located at the north-west of the country.
Supporters of Ahmadinejad consider him a "simple man" who leads a "modest" life.<ref>{{cite web|author=(AFP) – May 12, 2009 |url=http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5hJCaIeo2jqxiNDPX4-zKk3baqpog |title=AFP: Khamenei offers implicit support to Ahmadinejad |publisher=Google.com |date=2009-05-12 |accessdate=2010-09-07}}</ref> As president, he wanted to continue living in the same house in Tehran his family had been living in, until his security advisers insisted that he move. Ahmadinejad had the antique Persian carpets in the Presidential palace sent to a carpet museum, and opted instead to use inexpensive carpets. He is said to have refused the V.I.P. seat on the Presidential plane, and that he eventually replaced it with a cargo plane instead.<ref name="JLAnderson"/><ref>{{cite news|title=Africa can Learn from President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad|url=http://www.africanexecutive.com/modules/magazine/articles.php?article=4368|publisher=The African Executive}}</ref> Also upon gaining Iran's presidency, Ahmadinejad held his first cabinet meeting in the Imam Reza shrine at Mashhad, an act perceived as "pious".<ref>{{cite news|author=Pepe Escobar |title=Travels in Ahmadinejadland|url=http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Middle_East/GI15Ak02.html}}</ref>
===Administrative and academic careers===
Some details of Ahmadinejad's life during the 1980s are not publicly known, but it is known that he held a number of administrative posts in the province of [[West Azerbaijan]], [[Iran]].<ref name="JLAnderson"/>
Many reports say that after [[Saddam Hussein]] [[Iran–Iraq War|invaded Iran]], Ahmadinejad joined the [[Army of the Guardians of the Islamic Revolution]]<ref name="bioGS" /> and served in their intelligence and security apparatus,<ref name="bioGS" /> but his advisor [[Council for Spreading Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's Thoughts|Mojtaba Samareh Hashemi]] says "He has never been a member or an official member of the Revolutionary Guards", having been a [[Basij]]i-like volunteer instead.<ref name=EABFT20080530 >{{cite web| author= Najmeh Bozorgmehr| url = http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/3c04bcbc-2d9e-11dd-b92a-000077b07658,dwp_uuid=be75219e-940a-11da-82ea-0000779e2340.html?nclick_check=1| title = Interview transcript: Mojtaba Samareh-Hashemi| accessdate = 2009-07-28| date = 2008-05-30| publisher = [[Financial Times]]
}}</ref>
Ahmadinejad was accepted to a [[Master of Science]] program at his alma mater in 1986. He joined the faculty there as a lecturer in 1989,<ref name="bioIR"/><ref name="bioSenate" >{{cite web | author= Hussein D. Hassan | title = Profile and Statements of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad | publisher = [[Library of Congress]]
|date = 2007-01-16 | url = http://brownback.senate.gov/public/legissues/foreignpol_crsreportiranprofilestateofpres.pdf|accessdate = 2009-07-28 }}</ref> and in 1997 received his [[doctorate]] in civil engineering and traffic transportation planning.<ref name="bioIR" /><ref name="bioGS"/>
===Embassy siege===
{{Main|Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and the 1979 hostage crisis}}
Shortly after being elected president, some western media outlets published claims that Ahmadinejad was among the students who stormed the US embassy in Tehran, sparking the [[Iran hostage crisis]]. This claim has been denied by the Iranian government, the Iranian opposition as well as a CIA investigation on the matter.
===Early political career===
After the [[Islamic Revolution]], Ahmadinejad became a member of the [[Office for Strengthening Unity]],<ref name="bioIC"/> an organization developed to prevent students from sympathizing or allying with the budding [[Mojahedin-e Khalq]].<ref name="bioIC" />
He first took political office as unelected governor to both [[Maku, Iran|Maku]] and [[Khoy]] in [[West Azarbaijan Province]] during the 1980s.<ref name="bioGS" /> He eventually became an advisor to the governor general of [[Kurdistan province (Iran)|Kurdistan Province]] for two years.<ref name="bioIR" /><ref name="bioSenate" /> During his doctoral studies at Tehran, he was appointed governor general of [[Ardabil Province]] from 1993 until [[Mohammad Khatami]] removed him in 1997 <ref name="bioSenate" /> when he returned to teaching.<ref name="bioGS" />
===Mayor of Tehran===
In 2003, a 12 percent turnout elected [[conservative]] candidates from the [[Alliance of Builders of Islamic Iran]] to the [[City Council of Tehran]].<ref name="bioIR"/> The Council appointed Ahmadinejad [[Mayor of Tehran|mayor]].<ref name="bioGS" />
As mayor, he reversed changes made by previous [[moderate]] and [[reformism|reformist]] mayors. He put religious emphasis on the activities of cultural centres they had founded, publicised the separation of [[elevator]]s for men and women in the municipality offices,<ref name="entekhab2006"/> and suggested that people killed in the [[Iran–Iraq War]] be buried in major [[city square]]s of Tehran. He also worked to improve the traffic system and put an emphasis on [[Charity (virtue)|charity]], such as distributing free soup to the poor.
After his election to the presidency, Ahmadinejad's resignation as the Mayor of Tehran was accepted on 28 June 2005. After two years as mayor, Ahmadinejad was one of 65 finalists for [[World Mayor]] in 2005, selected from 550 nominees, only nine of them from Asia.<ref name="world mayor" /> He was among three strong candidates for the top ten list, but his resignation made him ineligible.<ref name="world mayor">{{cite web|url=http://www.worldmayor.com/results05/worldmayor_finalists05.html |title=The 2005 World Mayor finalists |publisher=Worldmayor.com |date= |accessdate=2011-06-18}}</ref>
==Presidency==
{{see|Government of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad (2005–present)}}
===2005 campaign===
Ahmadinejad was not widely known when he entered the presidential election campaign as he had never run for office before, (he had only been mayor of Tehran for two years and had been appointed not elected<ref>Wright, Robin, ''Dreams and Shadows : the Future of the Middle East'', Penguin Press, 2008, p.315</ref>), although he had already made his mark in Tehran for rolling back earlier reforms. He was/is a member of the [[Islamic Society of Engineers|Central Council of the Islamic Society of Engineers]], but his key political support is inside the [[Alliance of Builders of Islamic Iran]] (''Abadgaran'' or ''Developers'').<ref>Aneja, Atul (2006). He was also known as tir khalas zan before becoming president.[http://www.hinduonnet.com/fline/fl2326/stories/20070112001105500.htm "New Dynamics."] Frontline. Retrieved 28-07-2007.</ref><!-- This material no longer available at the URL stated 20090802 --> He was also helped by support from supreme leader [[Ali Khamanei]], who some described Ahmadinejad as a "protege" of.<ref name="scent">[http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2011/may/19/ahmadinejad-iran-power-struggle Ahmadinejad's enemies scent blood in Iran power struggle], Saeed Kamali Dehghan and Julian Borger | guardian.co.uk | 19 May 2011</ref>
Ahmadinejad generally sent mixed signals about his plans for his presidency, perhaps to attract both [[religious conservative]]s and the lower economic classes.<ref name=WP20050619 >{{cite news | author=Karl Vick | title = Hard-Line Figure In Iran Runoff | publisher = Washington Post | date = 2005-06-19 | url = http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/06/18/AR2005061801226_pf.html | accessdate = 2009-07-28 }}</ref> His campaign [[slogan]] was: "It's possible and we can do it".<ref name=PersMirror2005 />
In the campaign, he took a [[populism|populist]] approach. He emphasized his own modest life, and compared himself with [[Mohammad Ali Rajai]], Iran's second president. Ahmadinejad said he planned to create an "exemplary government for the people of the world" in Iran. He was a "principlist", acting politically based on Islamic and [[Iranian Revolution|revolutionary]] principles. One of his goals was "putting the [[petroleum]] income on people's tables", meaning Iran's oil profits would be distributed among the poor.<ref name=AT20060119 >{{cite web | author= Sami Moubayed | title = Iran and the art of crisis management | publisher = [[Asia Times Online]]
| date = 2006-01-19 | url = http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Middle_East/HA19Ak03.html | accessdate = 2009-07-28 }}</ref>
Ahmadinejad was the only presidential candidate who spoke out against future relations with the United States. He told [[Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting]] the [[United Nations]] was "one-sided, stacked against the world of Islam."<ref>Brea, Jennifer. [http://worldnews.about.com/od/iran/p/ahmadinejad.htm "Profile: Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, President of Iran."]. Retrieved 31-08-2006.</ref><!-- This material no longer available at the URL stated 20090802 --> He opposed the [[UN Security Council Veto Power|veto power]] of the [[UN Security Council]]'s five permanent members: "It is not just for a few states to sit and veto global approvals. Should such a privilege continue to exist, the Muslim world with a population of nearly 1.5 billion should be extended the same privilege." He defended [[Iran's nuclear program]] and accused "a few arrogant powers" of trying to limit Iran's industrial and technological development in this and other fields.
In his second round campaign, he said, "We didn't participate in the revolution for turn-by-turn government....This revolution tries to reach a world-wide government." He spoke of an extended program using trade to improve foreign relations, and called for greater ties with Iran's neighbours and ending [[Visa (document)|visa]] requirements between states in the region, saying that "people should visit anywhere they wish freely. People should have freedom in their [[pilgrimage]]s and tours."<ref name=PersMirror2005>{{cite web | author= Babnet Tunisia | title = More on Mahmoud Ahmadinejad | publisher = Persian Mirror | year = 2005 | url = http://persianmirror.com/community/2005/opinion/MahmoudAhmadinejad.cfm | accessdate = 2009-08-02 }}</ref>
Ahmadinejad described [[Ayatollah]] [[Mohammad Taghi Mesbah Yazdi]], a senior cleric from [[Qom]] as his ideological and spiritual mentor. Mesbah founded the [[Haghani Circle|Haghani]] School of thought in Iran. He and his team strongly supported Ahmadinejad's 2005 presidential campaign.<ref name=Prospect20060625>{{cite web | author= Nazenin Ansari | title = Divide and empower | publisher = Prospect Magazine | date = 2006-06-25 | url = http://www.prospect-magazine.co.uk/article_details.php?id=7487 | accessdate = 2009-08-02 }}</ref><!-- Available to subscribers only -->
===2005 election===
{{Main|Iranian presidential election, 2005}}
Ahmadinejad won 62 percent of the vote in the [[runoff election|run-off poll]] against [[Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani]]. [[Supreme Leader of Iran|Supreme Leader]] [[Ayatollah Khamenei]] authorized his presidency on 3 August 2005.<ref name="Voice Of America"/><ref name="Iran hardliner becomes president"/> Ahmedinejad kissed Khamenei's hand during the ceremony to show his loyalty.<ref>{{cite web| url = http://www.iranvajahan.net/cgi-bin/news.pl?l=en&y=2006&m=09&d=09&a=1| title = Behind Ahmadinejad, a Powerful Cleric| accessdate = 2006-12-06| date = 9 September 2006| publisher = New York Times}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://tofoiran.packdeal.com/clips/DrIman/20060906-DrIman-CNN-225.asx |title=Clip DrIman CNN – at Tofoiran |date= |accessdate=2011-06-18}}</ref>
===2005 cabinet appointments===
{| class="wikitable" style="margin:10px; float:right;"
|-
! Ministry
! Minister
|-
| Agriculture || [[Mohammadreza Eskandari]]
|-
| Commerce || [[Masoud Mirkazemi]]
|-
| Communication and Information Technology || [[Mohammad Soleimani]]
|-
| [[Ministry of Cooperatives (Iran)|Cooperatives]]|| [[Mohammad Abbasi]]
|-
| [[Ministry of Culture and Islamic Guidance|Culture and Islamic Guidance]] || [[Hossein Saffar Harandi]]
|-
| [[Ministry of Defense and Armed Forces Logistics|Defense and Armed Forces Logistics]] || [[Mostafa Mohammad Najjar]]
|-
| Economy and Financial Affairs || [[Hossein Samsami]]
|-
| [[Ministry of Education (Iran)|Education]] || [[Alireza Aliahmadi]]
|-
| Energy || [[Parviz Fattah]]
|-
| [[Minister of Foreign Affairs (Iran)|Foreign Affairs]] || [[Manoucher Mottaki]]
|-
| [[Ministry of Health and Medical Education|Health and Medical Education]] || [[Kamran Bagheri Lankarani]]
|-
| Housing and Urban Development || [[Mohammad Saeedikia]]
|-
| Industries and Mines || [[Aliakbar Mehrabian]]
|-
| [[Ministry of Intelligence of Iran|Intelligence]] || [[Gholam Hossein Mohseni-Ejehei]]
|-
| [[Ministry of Interior (Iran)|Interior]] || [[Mostafa Pour-Mohammadi]]<ref>{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/7735947.stm |title=''BBC'': New Iran interior chief approved |publisher=BBC News |date=2008-11-18 |accessdate=2009-06-21}}</ref>
|-
| [[Ministry of Justice (Iran)|Justice]] || [[Gholam Hossein Elham]]
|-
| Labour and Social Affairs || [[Mohammad Jahromi]]
|-
| [[Ministry of Petroleum of Iran|Petroleum]] || [[Rostam Ghassemi]]
|-
| Roads and Transportation || [[Hamid Behbahani]]
|-
| Science, Research, and Technology || [[Mohammad Mehdi Zahedi]]
|-
| Welfare and Social Security || [[Abdolreza Mesri]]
|}
Iran's President is constitutionally obliged to obtain confirmation from the [[Iranian Parliament|parliament]] for his selection of ministers.<ref name=ir-const-art113>{{cite web |title=Article 133 |work=[[Constitution of Islamic Republic of Iran]] |url=http://www.servat.unibe.ch/law/icl/ir00000_.html#A133_ |publisher=International Constitutional Law |year=1992 |accessdate=2 August 2009}} {{Dead link|date=September 2010|bot=H3llBot}}</ref> Ahmadinejad presented a short-list at a private meeting on 5 August, and his final list on 14 August. The Majlis rejected all of his cabinet candidates for the oil portfolio and objected to the appointment of his allies in senior government office.<ref name=AT20060119 /> The Majlis approved a cabinet on 24 August.<ref>[http://president.ir/ahmadinejad/cronicnews/1384/06/02/index-f.htm#b3 "Ahmadinejad’s cabinet declared."] Presidency of the Islamic Republic of Iran. Retrieved 18-10-2006. {{dead link|date=February 2011}}</ref><!-- Dead link. Material no longer available at this URL 20090802 --> The ministers promised to meet frequently outside Tehran and held their first meeting on 25 August in [[Mashhad]], with four empty seats for the unapproved nominees.<ref name=KT20050826>{{cite web |title=Depleted Iran cabinet meets after rejection of four by parliament
|author = Reuters |url=http://www.khaleejtimes.com/DisplayArticle.asp?xfile=data/middleeast/2005/August/middleeast_August739.xml§ion=middleeast&col=|publisher=Khaleej Times Online |date=2005-08-26 |accessdate=2 August 2009}}</ref>
===2006 Councils and Assembly of Experts election===
{{Main|Iranian councils election, 2006|Iranian Assembly of Experts election, 2006}}
Ahmadinejad’s team lost the 2006 city council elections,<ref name=WP20061217 /> and his spiritual mentor, [[Mohammad Taghi Mesbah Yazdi]], was ranked sixth on the country's Assembly of Experts. {{Citation needed|date=April 2011}} In the first nationwide election since Ahmadinejad became President, his allies failed to dominate election returns for the [[Assembly of Experts]] and local councils. Results, with a turnout of about 60%, suggested a voter shift toward more moderate policies. According to an editorial in the Kargozaran independent [[daily newspaper]], "The results show that voters have learned from the past and concluded that we need to support.. moderate figures." An Iranian political analyst said that "this is a blow for Ahmadinejad and [[Mohammad Taqi Mesbah-Yazdi|Mesbah Yazdi's]] list."<ref name=WP20061217>{{cite news|url=http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/12/17/AR2006121700772.html |title=Results in Iranian Vote Seen as Setback for Ahmadinejad |publisher=Washingtonpost.com |date= 2006-12-18|accessdate=2011-06-18 |first=Edmund |last=Blair}}</ref>
===2009 presidential election===
{{Main|Iranian presidential election, 2009}}
[[File:Ahmadinejad Russia June 2009.jpg|thumb|Ahmadinejad in [[Yekaterinburg]], [[Russia]], 16 June 2009]]
On 23 August 2008, Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei announced that he "sees Ahmadinejad as president in the next five years," a comment interpreted as indicating support for Ahmadinejad's reelection.<ref>"Renewed Power Struggle in Iran as the Presidential Elections Approach: Part I – Ahmadinejad's Revolutionary-Messianic Faction vs. Rafsanjani–Reformist Alliance." By: Y. Mansharof and A. Savyon* Iran|#488 | 26 December 2008</ref> 39,165,191 ballots were cast in the election on 12 June 2009, according to Iran's election headquarters. Ahmadinejad won 24,527,516 votes, (62.63%). In second place, [[Mir-Hossein Mousavi]], won 13,216,411 (33.75%) of the votes.<ref name=leads>{{cite news|publisher=BBC News|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/8098305.stm|date=13 June 2009|accessdate=13 June 2009|title=Ahmadinejad 'leads in Iran election' }}</ref> The election drew unprecedented public interest in Iran.
==2009 Iranian election protests==
{{Main|2009 Iranian election protests}}
{{As of |April 2011}}, the election results remain in dispute with both Mousavi and Ahmadinejad and their respective supporters who believe that [[electoral fraud]] occurred during the election. Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei formally endorsed Ahmadinejad as President on 3 August 2009, and Ahmadinejad was sworn in for a second term on 5 August 2009.<ref name=BBC20090805/> Iran's Constitution stipulates [[term limits]] of two terms for the office of President.<ref name="photius2">{{cite web|url=http://www.photius.com/countries/iran/government/iran_government_the_presidency.html |title=Iran The Presidency |publisher=Photius.com |date= |accessdate=2011-06-18}}</ref> Several Iranian political figures appeared to avoid the ceremony. Former presidents [[Mohammad Khatami]], and [[Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani]], who is currently head of the [[Expediency Discernment Council]], along with opposition leader Mir Hossein Mousavi, did not attend the ceremony.<ref>{{Cite news| url = http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/8180811.stm| title = Iran poll critics shun ceremony| accessdate = 5 August 2009| date=3 August 2009| publisher = BBC News}}</ref> Opposition groups asked protesters on reformist websites and blogs to launch new street demonstrations on the day of the inauguration ceremony.<ref>{{Cite news | title = Iran's opposition calls for inauguration protests | url = http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5jGSJEAPs_r2T2wxsL5G3t4z-jajQD99S84080 | publisher=[[Google news]]| agency=[[Associated Press]]| date=4 August 2009| accessdate=5 August 2009}} {{dead link|date=February 2011}}</ref> On [[Inauguration|inauguration day]], hundreds of riot police met opposition protesters outside parliament. After taking the [[oath of office]], which was broadcast live on [[Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting|Iranian state television]], Ahmadinejad said that he will "protect the official faith, the system of the Islamic revolution and the constitution".<ref name=BBC20090805/> France, Germany, the United Kingdom and the United States announced that they would not send the usual letters of congratulation.<ref name=BBC20090805>{{Cite news| date=5 August 2009| accessdate=5 August 2009| title=Defiant Iran president takes oath |publisher=BBC News| url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/8184240.stm}}</ref>
===2009 cabinet appointments===
{| class="wikitable" style="margin:10px; float:right;"
|-
! Ministry
! Minister
|-
| [[Agriculture in Iran|Agriculture]] || [[Sadeq Khalilian]]
|-
| [[Ministry of Commerce (Iran)|Commerce]] || [[Mehdi Ghazanfari]]
|-
| [[Communications in Iran|Communication and Information Technology]] || [[Reza Taqipour]]
|-
| [[Ministry of Cooperatives (Iran)|Cooperatives]] || [[Mohammad Abbasi]]
|-
| [[Ministry of Culture and Islamic Guidance|Culture and Islamic Guidance]] || [[Seyyed Mohammad Hosseini]]
|-
| [[Ministry of Defense and Armed Forces Logistics|Defense and Armed Forces Logistics]] || [[Ahmad Vahidi]]
|-
| [[Ministry of Economic Affairs and Finance (Iran)|Economy and Financial Affairs]] || [[Shamseddin Hosseini]]
|-
| [[Ministry of Education (Iran)|Education]] || [[Hamid-Reza Haji Babaee]]
|-
| [[Energy in Iran|Energy]] || [[Majid Namjoo]]
|-
| [[Minister of Foreign Affairs (Iran)|Foreign Affairs]] || [[Manouchehr Mottaki]]
|-
| [[Ministry of Health and Medical Education|Health and Medical Education]] || [[Marzieh Vahid Dastjerdi]]
|-
| [[Construction in Iran|Housing and Urban Development]] || [[Abdolreza Sheikholeslami]]
|-
| [[Industry of Iran|Industries and Mines]] || [[Aliakbar Mehrabian]]
|-
| [[Ministry of Intelligence of Iran|Intelligence]] || [[Heydar Moslehi]]
|-
| [[Ministry of Interior (Iran)|Interior]] || [[Mostafa Mohammad Najjar]]
|-
| [[Ministry of Justice (Iran)|Justice]] || [[Morteza Bakhtiari]]
|-
| [[Labor and tax laws in Iran|Labour and Social Affairs]] || [[Ali Nikzad]]
|-
| [[Ministry of Petroleum of Iran|Petroleum]] || [[Masoud Mir Kazemi]]
|-
| [[Transport in Iran|Roads and Transportation]] || [[Hamid Behbahani]]
|-
| [[Science and technology in Iran|Science, Research, and Technology]] || [[Kamran Daneshjoo]]
|-
| [[Economy of Iran#Labor and welfare|Welfare and Social Security]] || [[Sadeq Mahsouli]]
|}
Ahmadinejad announced controversial ministerial appointments for his second term. [[Esfandiar Rahim Mashaei]] was briefly appointed as first vice president, but opposed by a number of Majlis members and by the intelligence minister, [[Gholam-Hossein Mohseni-Eje'i]]. Mashaei followed orders to resign. Ahmadinejad then appointed Mashaei as chief of staff, and fired Mohseni-Eje'i.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/la-fg-iran27-2009jul27,0,6911282.story |title=Iran president clashes with conservatives |publisher=Latimes.com |date=2009-07-27 |accessdate=2011-06-18 |first1=Borzou |last1=Daragahi |first2=Ramin |last2=Mostaghim}}</ref>
On July 26, 2009, Ahmadinejad's government faced a legal problem after he sacked four ministers. Iran's constitution (Article 136) stipulates that, if more than half of its members are replaced, the cabinet may not meet or act before the Majlis approves the revised membership.<ref>{{cite web|last=Deshmukh |first=Jay |url=http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5jYm2jkM3p-MmD8B1Oh9ZDxXNG6xw |title=AFP: Ahmadinejad 'sacks four Iran ministers' |publisher=Google.com |date=2009-07-26 |accessdate=2010-09-07}}</ref> The Vice Chairman of the Majlis announced that no cabinet meetings or decisions would be legal, pending such a re-approval.<ref>{{cite web|author=Behnegarsoft.com |url=http://www.aftabnews.ir/vdchzinw.23nzmdftt2.html |title=آفتاب – باهنر: جلسات دولت نهم از این پس غیرقانونی است |publisher=Aftabnews.ir |date= |accessdate=2010-09-07}}</ref>
The main list of 21 cabinet appointments was announced on August 19, 2009.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.presstv.ir/detail.aspx?id=104018§ionid=351020101 |title=Ahmadinejad unveils new cabinet |publisher=Presstv.ir |date= |accessdate=2011-06-18}}</ref> On September 4, Majlis approved 18 of the 21 candidates, and rejected three, including two women. [[Sousan Keshavarz]], [[Mohammad Aliabadi]], and [[Fatemeh Ajorlou]] were not approved by Majlis for the Ministries of Education, Energy, and Welfare and Social Security respectively. [[Marzieh Vahid Dastjerdi]] is the first woman approved by Majlis as a minister in the Islamic Republic of Iran.<ref name="first">{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/8235264.stm|title=Iran backs first woman minister|date=2009-09-03|publisher=BBC|accessdate=28 November 2009}}</ref>
==Domestic policy==
===Economic policy===
{{See also|Economy of Iran}}
In Ahmadinejad's first four years as president, Iran's real GDP reflected growth of the economy. Inflation and unemployment have also decreased under Ahmadinejad due to better economic management and ending the unsustainable spending and borrowing patterns of previous administrations .<ref name="entre">{{cite news|url=http://in.reuters.com/article/asiaCompanyAndMarkets/idINDAH13987520080331 |title=Iran's unemployment falls to 10.3 pct -minister |publisher=In.reuters.com |date=2008-03-31 |accessdate=2011-06-18}}</ref><ref name=autogenerated1>{{cite web|url=http://www.presstv.ir/detail.aspx?id=106378§ionid=351020102 |title=Iran approves plan to lop three zeros off Rial |publisher=Presstv.ir |date= |accessdate=2011-06-18}}</ref> Ahmadinejad has increased spending by 25 percent and has supported [[subsidy|subsidies]] for food and [[petrol]]. He also initially refused a gradual increase of petrol prices, saying that after making necessary preparations, such as a development of [[public transportation]] system, the government will free up petrol prices after five years.<ref>Bakhtiar, Abbas. [http://www.payvand.com/news/07/jan/1295.html "Ahmadinejad's Achilles Heel"]</ref> Interest rates were cut by presidential decree to below the inflation rate. One unintended effect of this stimulation of the economy has been the bidding up of some urban real estate prices by two or three times their pre-Ahmadinejad value by Iranians seeking to invest surplus cash and finding few other safe opportunities. The resulting increase in the cost of housing has hurt poorer, non-property owning Iranians, the putative beneficiaries of Ahmadinejad's populist policies.<ref>"Letter from Tehran, The rationalist" by Laura Secor p.31 ''The New Yorker'', February 2, 2009</ref> The Management and Planning Organisation, a state body charged with mapping out long-term economic and budget strategy, was broken up and its experienced managers were fired.<ref name="donkey">{{cite web|url=http://www.newstatesman.com/economy/2008/09/iran-economic-ahmadinejad |title="Economics is for donkeys" Robert Tait, Published 11 September 2008 |publisher=Newstatesman.com |date=2008-09-11 |accessdate=2009-06-21}}</ref>
In June 2006, 50 Iranian economists wrote a letter to Ahmadinejad that criticized his price interventions to stabilize prices of [[good (economics)|goods]], [[cement]], government services, and his decree issued by the High Labor Council and the Ministry of Labor that proposed an increase of workers' salaries by 40 percent. Ahmadinejad publicly responded harshly to the letter and denounced the accusations.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://dailystar.com.lb/article.asp?edition_id=10&categ_id=3&article_id=73218 |title=Iranian economists lash out at Ahmadinejad's policies. |publisher=Dailystar.com.lb |date=2006-06-16 |accessdate=2011-06-18}}</ref><ref>[http://www.usatoday.com/money/world/2006-09-04-iran-economy-usat_x.htm "Geopolitics casts pall on hobbled Iranian economy."] [[USA Today]]. Retrieved 26-01-2008.</ref> Ahmadinejad has called for "middle-of-the-road" compromises with respect to Western-oriented [[capitalism]] and [[socialism]]. Current political conflicts with the United States have caused the central bank to fear increased [[capital flight]] due to [[Sanctions against Iran|global isolation]]. These factors have prevented an improvement of [[infrastructure]] and [[Financial capital|capital]] influx, despite high economic potential.<ref name="entre" /> Among those that did not vote for him in the first election, only 3.5 percent said they would consider voting for him in the next election.<ref>Sanati, Kimia. [http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Middle_East/IH24Ak03.html "Ahmadinejad held to election promises"]. Asia Times. Retrieved 01-02-2008.</ref> [[Mohammad Khoshchehreh]], a member of [[Iranian parliament]] that campaigned for Ahmadinejad, said that his government "has been strong on populist slogans, but weak on achievement."<ref name="discontent" >Dareini, Ali Akbar. [http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/01/17/AR2007011701335.html "Iran's Discontent With Ahmadinejad Grows."] The [[Washington Post]]. Retrieved 28-08-2007.</ref>
President Ahmadinejad has changed almost all of his economic ministers, including oil, industry and economy, since coming to power in 2005. In an interview with Fars News Agency on April 2008, [[Davoud Danesh Jaafari]] who acted as minister of economy in President Ahmadinejad’s cabinet, harshly criticized Ahmadinejad’s economic policy: "During my time, there was no positive attitude towards previous experiences or experienced people and there was no plan for the future. Peripheral issues which were not of dire importance to the nation were given priority. Most of the scientific economic concepts like the effect of liquidity on inflation were put in question."<ref>{{cite web|author=Apr 22, 2008 |url=http://afp.google.com/article/ALeqM5jPjMFDWR5wix280l0R7irdv5THEg |title=AFP: Ahmadinejad slammed by outgoing economy minister |publisher=Afp.google.com |date=2008-04-22 |accessdate=2009-06-21}}</ref> In response to these criticisms, Ahmadinejad accused his minister of not being "a man of justice" and declared that the solution to Iran’s economic problem is "the culture of martyrdom".<ref>{{cite web|author=Apr 24, 2008 |url=http://afp.google.com/article/ALeqM5jelVVHDZfukEAiK80qF88B6Q1Tpg |title=AFP: Martyrdom would solve Iran's economic woes: Ahmadinejad |publisher=Afp.google.com |date=2008-04-24 |accessdate=2009-06-21}}</ref> In May 2008, the Petroleum minister of Iran admitted that the government illegally invested 2 billion dollars to import petrol in 2007. At Iranian parliament, he also mentioned that he simply followed the president's order.<ref>[http://www.alef.ir/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=26085&Itemid=99999999 الف – واردات غیرقانونی بنزین را به دستور رئیسجمهور انجام دادهایم]{{Dead link|date=June 2009}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://norooznews.ir/news/7088.php |title=تخلف دو ميليارد دلاري احمدينژاد در وارادات غيرقانوني بنزين :: |publisher=www.norooznews.ir |date= |accessdate=2009-06-21}} {{Dead link|date=October 2010|bot=H3llBot}}</ref>
While his government had 275 thousand billion [[Iranian toman|toman]] oil income, the highest in Iranian history, Ahmadinejad’s government had the highest budget deficit since the Iranian revolution.<ref>{{cite news|last=Leyne |first=Jon |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/7687107.stm |title=Middle East | Iran economy facing 'perfect storm' |publisher=BBC News |date=2008-10-24 |accessdate=2009-06-21}}</ref>
During his presidency, Ahmadinejad launched a [[2007 Gas Rationing Plan in Iran|gasoline rationing plan]] to reduce the country's fuel consumption. He also instituted cuts in the interest rates that private and public banking facilities could charge.<ref name="InterestRates"/><ref name="MPO"/><ref>{{cite web| url = http://www.tehrantimes.com/index_View.asp?code=175959| title = Assembly of Experts to study economic reform plan: Rafsanjani| accessdate = 2008-08-23| date = 23 August 2008| publisher = Tehran Times}}</ref> He issued a directive that the [[Management and Planning Organisation of Iran|Management and Planning Organization]] be affiliated to the government.<ref>{{cite web| url = http://www.payvand.com/news/06/oct/1192.html| title = Iran: Debate heats up over restructuring of Management and Planning Organization
| accessdate = 2009-04-27| date = 18 October 2006| publisher = Payvand}}</ref> In May 2011 Ahmadinejad announced that he would temporarily run the Oil Ministry.<ref>{{cite news| url=http://www.cnn.com/2011/WORLD/meast/05/16/iran.ahmadinejad.oil/index.html?hpt=Sbin | work=CNN | title=Iran's leader taking over Oil Ministry temporarily, news agency says | date=2011-05-16}}</ref>
===Family planning and population policy===
{{See also|Family planning in Iran}}
In October 2006, Ahmadinejad began calling for the scrapping of Iran's existing birth control policies, which discouraged Iranian couples from having more than two children. He told [[Member of Parliament|MPs]] that Iran could cope with 50 million more people than the current 70 million. In November 2010 he urged Iranians to marry and reproduce earlier, "We should take the age of marriage for boys to 20 and for girls to about 16 and 17."<ref>[http://www.csmonitor.com/World/Middle-East/2010/1122/Ahmadinejad-calls-on-Iranian-girls-to-marry-at-16 Ahmadinejad calls on Iranian girls to marry at 16], csmonitor.com, Scott Peterson, November 22, 2010</ref> His remarks have drawn criticism and been called ill-judged at a time when Iran was struggling with surging inflation and rising unemployment, estimated at around 11 percent. Ahmadinejad’s call was reminiscent of a call for Iranians to have more children made by Ayatollah [[Ruhollah Khomeini]] in 1979. The policy increased Iran's population by 16 million in seven years<ref>Wright, Robin, ''Dreams and Shadows : the Future of the Middle East'', Penguin Press, 2008, p.321</ref> but was eventually reversed in response to the resultant economic strain.<ref name="Guard-Child">[http://www.guardian.co.uk/iran/story/0,,1929364,00.html?gusrc=rss&feed=1 "Ahmadinejad urges Iranian baby boom to challenge West"] [[The Guardian]]. Retrieved 03-05-2007.</ref>
In 2008, the government sent the "Family Protection Bill" to the Iranian parliament. Women's rights activists criticized the bill for removing protections from women, such as the requirement that a husband obtain his wife's consent before bringing another wife into the family. Women's rights in Iran are more religiously based than those in secular countries.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.hindustantimes.com/StoryPage/StoryPage.aspx?sectionName=&id=d2936dca-6f92-4333-bba3-a0e61c07edab&MatchID1=4737&TeamID1=8&TeamID2=6&MatchType1=1&SeriesID1=1194&MatchID2=4728&TeamID3=2&TeamID4=3&MatchType2=1&SeriesID2=1191&PrimaryID=4737&Headline=Ebadi+protests+against+Iran%e2%80%99s+polygamy+bill&strParent=strParentID |title=Ebadi protests against Iran’s polygamy bill |publisher=Hindustan Times |date= |accessdate=2009-06-21}}</ref>
===Housing===
{{See also|Construction industry of Iran#Mehr Housing Scheme}}
The first legislation to emerge from his newly formed government was a 12 trillion [[Iranian rial|rial]] ([[US$]]1.3 billion) fund called ''"Reza's Compassion Fund"'',<ref>{{cite web| url = http://roozonline.com/01newsstory/012137.shtml| title = "Reza's Compassion Fund" project archived.| accessdate = 2006-10-17| date =| year =| month =| work =| publisher = [[Rooz]]| language = {{fa icon}}|archiveurl = http://web.archive.org/web/20061021113903/http://roozonline.com/01newsstory/012137.shtml |archivedate = 2006-10-21}}</ref> named after [[Shi'a Islam|Shi'a]] [[Shi'a Imam|Imam]] [[Ali al-Rida]]. Ahmadinejad's government said this fund would tap Iran's [[oil]] [[revenue]]s to help young people get jobs, afford marriage, and buy their own homes.<ref>[http://irannegah.com/Video.aspx?id=593 "Video of Imam Reza Love Fund."] [[IranNegah]]. Retrieved 18-05-2008.</ref> The fund also sought charitable donations, with a [[trustee|board of trustees]] in each of Iran's 30 provinces. The legislation was a response to the cost of urban housing, which is pushing up the national average marital age (currently around 25 years for women and 28 years for men). In 2006 the Iranian parliament rejected the fund.
However, Ahmadinejad ordered the administrative council to execute the plan.<ref>{{cite web| url = http://roozonline.com/01newsstory/016575.shtml| title = Reza's Compassion Fund; a political fund with 530 billion budget.| accessdate = 2006-10-17| date =| year =| month =| work =| publisher = [[Rooz]]| language = {{fa icon}}|archiveurl = http://web.archive.org/web/20060716094802/http://roozonline.com/01newsstory/016575.shtml |archivedate = 2006-07-16}}</ref>
===Human rights===
{{See also|Human rights in the Islamic Republic of Iran}}
[[File:Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.jpg|thumb|Ahmadinejad speaking at [[Columbia University]] ]]
According to a report by [[Human Rights Watch]], "Since President Ahmadinejad came to power, treatment of detainees has worsened in [[Evin Prison]] as well as in detention centers operated clandestinely by the Judiciary, the Ministry of Information, and the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps."<ref>[http://hrw.org/englishwr2k7/docs/2007/01/11/iran14703.htm "World Report 2007"] [[Human Rights Watch]]. Retrieved 26-01-2008.</ref> Again according to [[Human Rights Watch]], "Respect for basic human rights in Iran, especially freedom of expression and assembly, deteriorated in 2006. The government routinely tortures and mistreats detained dissidents, including through prolonged solitary confinement." Human Rights Watch described the source of human rights violations in contemporary Iran as coming from the Judiciary, accountable to [[Ali Khamenei]], and from members directly appointed by Ahmadinejad.
Responses to dissent have varied. Human Rights Watch writes that "the Ahmadinejad government, in a pronounced shift from the policy under former president Mohammed Khatami, has shown no tolerance for peaceful protests and gatherings." In December 2006, Ahmadinejad advised officials not to disturb students who engaged in a protest during a speech of his at the [[Amirkabir University of Technology]] in Tehran,<ref>[http://www.rajanews.com/News/?3739 ""] Rajanews. Retrieved 26-01-2008. {{dead link|date=February 2011}}</ref><ref>[http://www.rajanews.com/News/?3737 ""] Rajanews. Retrieved 26-01-2008. {{dead link|date=February 2011}}</ref> although speakers at other protests have included among their complaints that there had been a crackdown on dissent at universities since Ahmadinejad was elected.<ref>Fathi, Nazila. [http://deseretnews.com/dn/view/0,1249,650214386,00.html "Students disrupt speech by Iran chief"] [[New York Times]]. Retrieved 12-12-2006.</ref>
In April 2007, the Tehran police, which is under Khamenei's supervision, began a crackdown on women with "improper hijab." This led to criticism from associates of Ahmadinejad.<ref>[http://www.baztab.com/news/65372.php "Ahmadinejad's adviser criticizes hijab enforcement issue."] Baztab. Retrieved 23 April 2007. {{dead link|date=February 2011}}</ref>
In 2012, Ahmadinejad claimed that AIDS was created by the West in order to weaken poorer countries, and repeated a previous claim that homosexual Iranians did not exist.<ref name="Telegraph 18.01.2012">{{cite news |url=http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/middleeast/iran/9023777/HIV-created-by-West-to-enfeeble-third-world-claims-Mahmoud-Ahmadinejad.html |title=HIV created by West to enfeeble third world, claims Mahmoud Ahmadinejad |author=Ahmad Vahdat |date=18 January 2012 |newspaper=The Daily Telegraph |accessdate=19 January 2012 |___location=London}}</ref>
===Universities===
{{See also|Higher education in Iran}}
In 2006, the Ahmadinejad <ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.neyous.com |title=neYous Social Headline News Aggregator |publisher=Neyous.com |date= |accessdate=2010-09-07}}</ref> government reportedly forced numerous Iranian scientists and university professors to resign or to retire. It has been referred to as "second [[Islamic Cultural Revolution|cultural revolution]]".<ref>[http://roozonline.com/01newsstory/016196.shtml "Protest against the second cultural revolution."] Rooz. Retrieved 18-10-2006. {{dead link|date=February 2011}}</ref><ref>Irani, Hamid. [http://roozonline.com/english/016235.shtml "Cleansing in the Name of Retirement"]. Retrieved 18-10-2006. {{Failed verification|date=October 2010}}</ref> The policy has been said to replace old professors with younger ones.<ref>[http://www.aftabnews.ir/vdcco4q2boqe0.html "Khoshchehreh (MP) protests against the unwanted retirement of university professors."] Aftab News. Retrieved 18-10-2006.</ref> Some university professors received letters indicating their early retirement unexpectedly.<ref>[http://www.aftabnews.ir/vdcdnf0yt509o.html "Different aspects of the unwanted retirement of university professors."] Aftab News. Retrieved 18-10-2006.</ref> In November 2006, 53 university professors had to retire from [[Iran University of Science and Technology]].<ref>[http://news.gooya.eu/politics/archives/2006/11/055304.php "صدور حکم بازنشستگی برای ۵۳ استاد دانشگاه علم و صنعت، ادوار نيوز"] Gooya. Retrieved 26-01-2008.</ref>
In 2006, Ahmadinejad's government applied a 50 percent [[Racial quota|quota]] for male students and 50 percent for female students in the university entrance exam for [[medicine]], [[dentistry]] and [[pharmacy]]. The plan was supposed to stop the growing presence of female students in the universities. In a response to critics, Iranian minister of health and medical education, [[Kamran Bagheri Lankarani]] argued that there are not enough facilities such as dormitories for female students. Masoud Salehi, president of Zahedan University said that presence of women generates some problems with transportation. Also, Ebrahim Mekaniki, president of [[Babol University of Medical Sciences]], stated that an increase in the presence of women will make it difficult to distribute facilities in a suitable manner. Bagher Larijani, the president of [[Tehran University of Medical Sciences]] made similar remarks. According to [[Rooz|Rooz Online]], the quotas lack a legal foundation and are justified as support for "family" and "religion."
====December 2006 student protest====
On 11 December 2006, some students disrupted a speech by Ahmadinejad at the [[Amirkabir University of Technology]] (Tehran Polytechnic) in Tehran. According to the [[Iranian Student News Agency]], students set fire to photographs of Ahmadinejad and threw firecrackers. The protesters also chanted "death to the dictator." It was the first major public protest against Ahmadinejad since his election. In a statement carried on the students' Web site,{{Citation needed|date=February 2007}} they announced that they had been protesting the growing political pressure under Ahmadinejad, also accusing him of corruption, mismanagement, and discrimination. The statement added that "the students showed that despite vast propaganda, the president has not been able to deceive academia." It was also reported that some students were angry about the [[International Conference to Review the Global Vision of the Holocaust]].<ref name="students" >Theodoulou, Michael. {{cite web|url=http://thescotsman.scotsman.com/index.cfm?id=1841632006|title=Protesters condemn Holocaust conference.|publisher=The Scotsman|accessdate=Retrieved 06-05-2007}}</ref>
In response to the students' slogans, the president said: "We have been standing up to dictatorship so that no one will dare to establish dictatorship in a millennium even in the name of freedom. Given the scars inflicted on the Iranian nation by agents of the US and British dictatorship, no one will ever dare to initiate the rise of a dictator."<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.irna.com/en/news/view/line-17/0612111551150517.htm|title=President: Students are pioneers of revolutionary movements – Irna}}] {{dead link|date=February 2011}}</ref> It was reported that even though the protesters broke the TV cameras and threw hand-made bombs at Ahmadinejad,<ref>{{cite web|author=14:29:55 |url=http://peyvast.blog.com/1353199/ |title=Films of yesterday protest in Iran are leaking out « Connections پیوست |publisher=Peyvast.blog.com |date=2006-12-12 |accessdate=2009-06-21|archiveurl = http://web.archive.org/web/20080507060133/http%3A//peyvast.blog.com/1353199/ |archivedate = May 7, 2008|deadurl=yes}}</ref> the president asked the officials not to question or disturb the protesters.<ref>[http://www.rajanews.com/News/?3739 ] {{Wayback|url=http://www.rajanews.com/News/?3739|date =20080307115938}}{{Dead link|date=September 2009}}</ref><ref>[http://www.rajanews.com/News/?3737 ] {{Wayback|url=http://www.rajanews.com/News/?3737|date =20080307115933}}{{Dead link|date=September 2009}}</ref> In his blog, Ahmadinejad described his reaction to the incident as "a feeling of joy" because of the freedom that people enjoyed after the revolution.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ahmadinejad.ir/en/freedom/|title=Freedom and Liberty|publisher=Ahmadinejad's English Blog}} {{dead link|date=February 2011}}</ref>
One thousand students also protested the day before to denounce the increased pressure on the reformist groups at the university. One week prior, more than two thousand students protested at [[Tehran University]] on the country's annual student day, with speakers saying that there had been a crackdown on dissent at universities since Ahmadinejad was elected.<ref name="students" /><ref>{{cite news | url=http://deseretnews.com/dn/view/0,1249,650214386,00.html | title=Students disrupt speech by Iran chief | author=Nazila Fathi | publisher=New York Times News Service | date=12 December 2006}}</ref>
===Nuclear program===
{{See also|Nuclear program of Iran}}
Ahmadinejad has been a vocal supporter of [[Nuclear program of Iran|Iran's nuclear program]], and has insisted that it is for peaceful purposes. He has repeatedly emphasized that building a [[nuclear weapon|nuclear bomb]] is not the policy of his government. He has said that such a policy is "illegal and against our religion."<ref>[http://www.bbc.co.uk/persian/iran/story/2006/01/060111_mj-ir-nuke-ahmadinejad.shtml "Ahamadinejad: "We will reach the nuclear energy in near future."] [[BBC News]]. Retrieved 29-10-2006.</ref><ref>[http://www.missiledefenseadvocacy.org/news/article.php?cat=threats&articleid=383 "Ahmadinejad Claims Iran Has 3,000 Centrifuges"] [[Missile Defense Advocacy]]. Retrieved 04-09-2007. {{dead link|date=February 2011}}</ref> He also added at a January 2006 conference in Tehran that a nation with "culture, logic and civilization" would not need nuclear weapons, and that countries that seek nuclear weapons are those that want to solve all problems by the use of force.<ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/4613644.stm "Excerpts: Ahmadinejad conference."] [[BBC News]]. Retrieved 29-10-2006.</ref> In a 2008 interview Ahmadinejad elaborated that countries striving to obtain nuclear weapons are not politically progressive nations and those who possess them and continually make new generations of such bombs are "even more backward".<ref name="Press TV">{{cite news |author= [[Amy Goodman|Goodman, Amy]]; [[Juan Gonzalez (journalist)|Gonzalez, Juan]] |title= Ahmadinejad: Nukes for not politically progressive states |url= http://www.presstv.ir/detail.aspx?id=70578§ionid=3510302 |work= [[Press TV]] |date=2008-09-26 |accessdate=2008-09-26 }}</ref>
In April 2006, Ahmadinejad announced that Iran had successfully refined [[uranium]] to a stage suitable for the [[nuclear fuel cycle]]. In a speech to students and academics in [[Mashhad]], he was quoted as saying that Iran's conditions had changed completely as it had become a nuclear state and could talk to other states from that stand.<ref>[http://www.arabicnews.com/ansub/Daily/Day/060413/2006041301.html "Ahmadinejad: Iran can now talk to world from vantage point of a nuclear state."] Arabic News. Retrieved 29-10-2006.</ref> On 13 April 2006, Iranian news agency, [[IRNA]], quoted Ahmadinejad as saying that the peaceful Iranian nuclear technology would not pose a threat to any party because "we want peace and stability and we will not cause injustice to anyone and at the same time we will not submit to injustice."<ref>[http://washtimes.com/upi/20060413-093634-8426r.htm "Ahmadinejad: Iran nuke right non-negotiable."] UPI. Retrieved 12-06-2006.</ref> Nevertheless, Iran's nuclear policy under Ahmadinejad's administration has received much criticism, spearheaded by the United States and Israel. The accusations include that Iran is striving to obtain nuclear arms and developing long-range firing capabilities—and that Ahmadinejad issued an order to keep [[UN]] inspectors from freely visiting the nation's nuclear facilities and viewing their designs, in defiance of an [[IAEA]] resolution.<ref>{{cite web|last=Ravid |first=Barak |url=http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1108564.html |title="Sources: UN watchdog hiding evidence on Iran nuclear program." Haaretz |publisher=Haaretz.com |date=2011-06-12 |accessdate=2011-06-18}}</ref><ref>[http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/02/05/AR2006020500877.html "Nuclear Inspections Are Curbed by Iran."] The Washington Post.</ref><ref>[http://topics.nytimes.com/top/news/international/countriesandterritories/iran/nuclear_program/index.html "Iran's Nuclear Program."] The New York Times.</ref><ref>[http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,297935,00.html "Mahmoud Ahmadinejad: 'Nuclear Issue of Iran Is Now Closed'."] FOX News.</ref> Following a May 2009 test launch of a long-range [[missile]], Ahmadinejad was quoted as telling the crowd that with its nuclear program, Iran was sending the West a message that "the Islamic Republic of Iran is running the show."<ref>[http://www.nytimes.com/2009/05/21/world/middleeast/21iran.html?_r=1 "Iran Test-Fires Missile With 1,200-Mile Range."] The New York Times.</ref>
Despite Ahmadinejad's vocal support for the program, the office of the Iranian president is not directly responsible for nuclear policy. It is instead set by the [[Supreme National Security Council]]. The council includes two representatives appointed by the [[Supreme Leader]], military officials, and members of the executive, judicial, and legislative branches of government, and reports directly to Supreme Leader [[Ali Khamenei]], who issued a [[fatwa]] against nuclear weapons in 2005.<ref>Recknagel, Charles. [http://www.rferl.org/featuresarticle/2005/6/C10D5293-86D9-4C7D-8B9F-1A252BC10D3E.html "Iran: Election Of Ahmadinejad Unlikely To Affect Nuclear Negotiations."] Radio Free Europe. Retrieved 29-102006.</ref> Khamenei has criticized Ahmadinejad's "personalization" of the nuclear issue.<ref name="moderating">[http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/NEWS/World/Rest_of_World/Iran_rebukes_its_prez_over_N-policy/articleshow/1319950.cms "Iran rebukes its prez over N-policy."] The Times of India. Retrieved 26-01-2008.</ref>
Ahmadinejad vowed on February 2008, that Iran will not be held back from developing its peaceful nuclear program<ref>[http://edition.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/meast/02/23/iran.jealous/index.html "Ahmadinejad: Nations jealous of nuclear progress"]. Retrieved 24-02-2008.</ref> and has stated that at least 16 different peaceful uses for nuclear technology have so far been identified.<ref name="Press TV"/> Ahmadinejad has stressed the importance of the right to peaceful nuclear development. Iranian opposition leader, Mousavi, has even stated that giving up the country's nuclear program would be "irreparable" and that the Iranian people support the nuclear program. "No one in Iran will accept suspension," Mousavi has said, adding that if elected, his policy would be to work to provide "guarantees" that Tehran's nuclear activities would never divert to non-peaceful aims.<ref name="PressTV-2009-04-14">{{cite web|url=http://www.presstv.ir/detail.aspx?id=91361§ionid=351020101|title=Mousavi: Iran will never halt enrichment|date=14 April 2009|publisher=PressTV.IR|accessdate=1 July 2009}}</ref>
In October 2009 the United States, France and Russia proposed a U.N.-drafted deal with Iran regarding its nuclear program, in an effort to find a compromise between Iran's stated need for a nuclear reactor and the concerns of those who are worried that Iran harbors a secret intent on developing a nuclear weapon. After some delay in responding, on October 29, Ahmadinejad seemed to change his tone towards the deal. "We welcome fuel exchange, nuclear co-operation, building of power plants and reactors and we are ready to co-operate," he said in a live broadcast on state television.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://english.aljazeera.net/news/middleeast/2009/10/2009102984633409448.html |title=Iran 'ready for nuclear agreement' – Middle East |publisher=Al Jazeera English |date=2009-10-29 |accessdate=2010-09-07}}</ref> However, he added that Iran would not retreat "one iota" on its right to a sovereign nuclear program.<ref>{{cite news| url=http://www.reuters.com/article/newsOne/idUSLT25626120091029?pageNumber=2&virtualBrandChannel=11621 | work=Reuters | title=Iran proposes big changes to draft atom deal: report | date=2009-10-29}}</ref>
==Domestic criticism and controversies==
===Alleged corruption===
Ahmadinejad has been criticized for attacking private "plunderers" and "corrupt officials," while engaging in "cronyism and political favouritism". Many of his close associates have been appointed to positions for which they have no obvious qualifications, and "billion dollar no-bid contracts" have been awarded to the [[Army of the Guardians of the Islamic Revolution|Islamic Revolution Guard Corps]] (IRGC), an organization with which he is strongly associated.<ref>{{cite web|author=Crisis Group |url=http://www.crisisgroup.org/home/index.cfm?id=4647&l=1 |title=International Crisis Group, Iran: Ahmadi-Nejad’s Tumultuous Presidency, 6 February 2007 |publisher=Crisisgroup.org |date=2007-02-06 |accessdate=2009-06-21| archiveurl = http://web.archive.org/web/20080709030746/http://www.crisisgroup.org/home/index.cfm?id=4647&l=1| archivedate = July 9, 2008}}</ref>
===Other statements===
[[File:Vladimir Putin in Iran 16-17 October 2007-9.jpg|thumb|left|Participants of the second Caspian Summit. From left to right: President of Azerbaijan [[Ilham Aliev]], President of Turkmenistan [[Gurbanguly Berdymukhammedov]], President of Kazakhstan [[Nursultan Nazarbaev]], President of Russia [[Vladimir Putin]] and President of Iran Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.]]
In June 2007, Ahmadinejad was criticized by some Iranian parliament members over his remark about [[Christianity]] and [[Judaism]]. According to Aftab News Agency, Ahmadinejad stated: "In the world, there are deviations from the right path: Christianity and Judaism. Dollars have been devoted to the propagation of these deviations. There are also false claims that these [religions] will save mankind. But Islam is the only religion that [can] save mankind." Some members of Iranian parliament criticized these remarks as being fuels to religious war.<ref>[http://web.archive.org/web/20080504173742/http://www.cbn.com/cbnnews/CWN/121605iran.aspx "Iran's President Threatens Crackdown on Christianity"] CBN News. Retrieved 27-01-2008.</ref><ref>{{cite web |date=7 June 2007 |title=دفاع از اظهارات احمدینژاد عليه مسيحيت و يهود، آفتاب |url=http://news.gooya.eu/politics/archives/2007/06/060469.php |publisher=[[Gooya]] |language=[[Persian language|Persian]] |accessdate=31 May 2009}}</ref>
Conservative MP Rafat Bayat has accused Ahmadinejad for a decline in observance of the required [[hijab]] for women, calling him "not that strict on this issue".<ref>Harrison, Frances. [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/6213854.stm "Iran police move into fashion business"]. Retrieved 16-04-2007.</ref> Ahmadinejad has been also accused of indecency by people close to [[Rafsanjani]],<ref>[http://www.ansarnews.com/?usr=news/detail&nid=993 "روزنامه هاشمي": بوسه احمدینژاد بر دست معلم سالخوردهاش، اشكال شرعي دارد!"] Ansar News. Retrieved 27-01-2008.</ref> after he publicly kissed the hand of a woman who used to be his school teacher.<ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/6619077.stm "Ahmadinejad accused of indecency"] BBC News. Retrieved 28-01-2008.</ref>
===The UN and football stadiums===
Two statements that have brought criticism from some religious authorities concern his speech at the United Nations, and the attendance of women at football matches. In a visit to group of Ayatollahs in [[Qom]] after returning from his 2005 speech to the [[UN General Assembly]], Ahmadinejad stated he had "felt a halo over his head" during his speech and that a hidden presence had mesmerized the unblinking audience of foreign leaders, foreign ministers, and ambassadors. According to at least one source (Hooman Majd), this was offensive to the conservative religious leaders because an ordinary man cannot presume a special closeness to God or any of the [[Imamah (Shi'a doctrine)|Imams]], nor can he imply the presence of the [[Muhammad al-Mahdi|Mahdi]].<ref name=majd2008p79>''The Ayatollah Begs to Differ : The Paradox of Modern Iran'' by Hooman Majd, Doubleday, 2008, p.79</ref>
In another statement the next year, Ahmadinejad proclaimed (without consulting the clerics beforehand), that women be allowed into football stadiums to watch male football clubs compete. This proclamation "was quickly overruled" by clerical authorities, one of whom, Grand Ayatollah [[Mohammad Fazel Lankarani]] "refused for weeks to meet with President Ahmadinejad" in early 2007.<ref name=majd2008p79/>
===Iran constitution conflict===
In 2008, a serious conflict emerged between the Iranian President and the head of parliament over three laws approved by Iranian parliament: "the agreement for civil and criminal legal cooperation between Iran and Kyrgyzstan", "the agreement to support mutual investment between Iran and Kuwait", and "the law for registration of industrial designs and trademarks". The conflict was so serious that the Iranian leader stepped in to resolve the conflict. Ahmadinejad wrote a letter to parliament speaker [[Gholam-Ali Haddad-Adel]], furiously denouncing him for an "inexplicable act" in bypassing the presidency by giving the order to implement legislation in an official newspaper.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.nasdaq.com/aspxcontent/NewsStory.aspx?cpath=20080422%5CACQDJON200804220542DOWJONESDJONLINE000190.htm&&mypage=newsheadlines&title=Iran%20President%20Ahmadinejad%20In%20Rows%20With%203%20Leading%20Officials%20-%20AFP |title=Iran President Ahmadinejad In Rows With 3 Leading Officials – AFP |publisher=Nasdaq.com |date= |accessdate=2009-06-21}}</ref> President Ahmadinejad accused the head of parliament of violating Iranian constitutional law. He called for legal action against the Parliament speaker.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.iran-press-service.com/ips/articles-2008/april-2008/ahmadinejad-attacks-haddad-adel.shtml |title=Ahmadinejad Attacks Haddad Adel (Iran Press Service) |publisher=Iran Press Service |date= |accessdate=2009-06-21}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.presstv.ir/detail.aspx?id=52720§ionid=351020101 |title=Press TV – Haddad-Adel: Constitution not violated |publisher=Presstv.ir |date=2008-04-23 |accessdate=2009-06-21}}</ref> Haddad-Adel responded to Ahmadinejad accusing him of using inappropriate language in his remarks and letters.<ref>[http://www.alef.ir/content/view/25046/ الف – پاسخ رئیسمجلس به رئیسجمهور]{{Dead link|date=June 2009}}</ref>
===Ali Kordan===
{{Main|Ali Kordan}}
In August 2008, Dr Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, appointed [[Ali Kordan]] as Iran's interior minister. Kordan's appointment has been criticized by Iranian parliamentarians, media and analysts after it came to light that a doctoral degree allegedly awarded to Ali Kordan was fabricated, and that the putative issuer of the degree, [[Oxford University]], had no record of Ali Kordan receiving any degree from the University.<ref name="oxfordstatement" >{{cite news|url=http://www.ox.ac.uk/media/news_stories/2008/080815.html|title=Statement: Mr Ali Kordan|date=2008-08-15|accessdate=2008-08-17|publisher=[[The University of Oxford]]}}</ref>
It was also revealed that he had been jailed in 1978 for moral charges.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.roozonline.com/archives/2008/08/post_8726.php|title= سوابق اخلاقي
|date=2008-08-14|accessdate=2008-08-14|publisher=[[Rooz|Rooz online]]|archiveurl = http://web.archive.org/web/20080822005850/http://www.roozonline.com/archives/2008/08/post_8726.php |archivedate = 2008-08-22}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.peykeiran.com/iran_news_body.aspx?ID=52649|title= تصویر سند بازداشت عوض علی کردان به اتهام ازاله بکارت|language=Persian|date=2008-08-18|accessdate=2008-08-18|publisher=[[Peykeiran]]}} {{Dead link|date=September 2010|bot=H3llBot}}</ref>
Fabrication of legal documents is punishable in Iranian law with one to three years of imprisonment and in the case of government officials, the maximum sentence (three years) is demanded.{{Citation needed|date=October 2008}}
In November 2008, President Ahmadinejad announced that he was against impeachment of Ali Kordan by Iranian parliament. He refused to attend the parliament on the impeachment day.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.africasia.com/services/news/newsitem.php?area=mideast&item=081104102917.yxb25ese.php |title=IC Publications |publisher=Africasia.com |date= |accessdate=2009-06-21}}</ref> Ali Kordan was expelled from Iranian interior ministry by Iranian parliament on 4 November 2008. 188 MPs voted against Ali Kordan. An impeachment of Kordan would push Ahmadinejad close to having to submit his entire cabinet for review by parliament, which is led by one of his chief political opponents. Iran's constitution requires that step if more than half the cabinet ministers are replaced, and Ahmadinejad has replaced nine of 21.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/11/03/AR2008110301757.html?hpid=moreheadlines |title=Scandal, Fistfight Erupt Over Impeachment Move in Iran |publisher=washingtonpost.com |date= 2008-11-04|accessdate=2009-06-21 | first=Thomas | last=Erdbrink}}</ref>
<ref>{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/7707963.stm |title=Middle East | Iran minister sacked over forgery |publisher=BBC News |date=2008-11-04 |accessdate=2009-06-21}}</ref>
===Conflict with Parliament===
On February 2009 after [[Supreme Audit Court of Iran]] reported that $1.058 billion of surplus [[oil revenue]] in the (2006–2007) budget hasn't been returned by the government to the national treasury,<ref>{{cite news |url=http://online.wsj.com/article/BT-CO-20090207-700479.html?mod= |title=Iran Missing More Than $1 Bln In Surplus Oil Revenue – Report |author= Roshanak Taghavi |authorlink= |date=2009-02-07 |publisher=[[Dow Jones Newswires]] |accessdate=2009-02-23}} {{Dead link|date=September 2010|bot=H3llBot}}</ref><ref name="international1">{{cite news |url=http://www.upi.com/Energy_Resources/2009/02/16/Iran_examines_missing_oil_revenue/UPI-25891234800966/ |title=Iran examines missing oil revenue |author= |authorlink= |date=2009-02-16 |publisher=United Press International |accessdate=2009-02-23
}}</ref> [[Ali Larijani]], [[Majlis of Iran|Iran's parliamentary]] speaker, called for further investigations to make sure the missing funds are returned to the treasury as soon as possible.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.presstv.ir/detail.aspx?id=84719§ionid=351020102 |title=Iran looks into missing $1B oil money |author= |authorlink= |date=2009-02-05 |publisher=[[presstv]] |accessdate=2009-02-23}}</ref> Ahmadinejad criticized the National Audit Office for what he called its "carelessness", saying the report "incites the people" against the government.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.iran-daily.com/1387/3346/html/economy.htm#s364827 |title=Oil Money Report Rejected |author= |authorlink= |date=2009-02-21 |publisher=Iran newspaper |accessdate=2009-02-23}} {{Dead link|date=September 2010|bot=H3llBot}}</ref> The head of the parliament Energy Commission, Hamidreza Katouzian, reported: The government spent $5 billion to import fuel, about $2 billion more than the sum parliament had authorized. Katouzian quoted Iran's Oil Minister, Gholam-Hossein Nozari, as saying that President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad had ordered the extra purchase.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.presstv.com/detail.aspx?id=85792§ionid=351020102 |title=Majlis searching for $1B missing oil money
|author=|authorlink=|date=2009-02-15|publisher=[[presstv]]|accessdate=2009-02-23}}</ref>
In May 2011 several members of parliament threatened to initiate impeachment proceedings against Ahmadinejad after his merger of eight government ministries and the firing of three ministers without parliament’s consent. According to the Majles News Web site, MP [[Mohammad Reza Bahonar]] stated, "legal purging starts with questions, which lead to warnings and end with impeachment." On May 25 parliament voted to investigate another allegation, that Ahmadinejad had committed election irregularities by giving cash to up to nine million Iranians before the 2009 presidential elections. The vote came within hours after the allegations appeared in several popular conservative news sites associated with supreme leader [[Ali Khamenei]], suggesting the supreme leader supported the investigation.<ref name="wayout">[http://www.insideiran.org/domestic-relations/is-ahmadinejad-on-his-way-out/ Is Ahmadinejad on His Way Out?]
Insdie Iran | May 25th, 2011 *articles published on May 25 to multiple popular conservative pro-Khamenei news sites accused the president (Farsi language) of giving $80 dollars per person to as many as 9 million Iranians before the June 2009 elections. Shortly after the publication of these stories, within a matter of hours, the Iranian parliament voted to investigate these allegations (Farsi language). ]</ref> The disputes were seen as part of the clash between Ahmadinejad and other conservatives and former supporters, including supreme leader Khamenei, over what the conservatives see as Ahmadinejad's confrontational policies and abuse of power.<ref name="wayout"/><ref>[http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/ayatollah-irans-president-bewitched-by-senior-aide/2011/05/15/AF7vOG4G_story.html?wprss=rss_homepage Ayatollah: Iran’s president ‘bewitched’ by senior aide], Thomas Erdbrink, Washington Post, 15 May 2011,</ref>
===Relations with Supreme Leader===
Early in his presidency, Ahmadinejad was sometimes described as "enjoy[ing] the full backing" of the [[Supreme Leader]] [[Ali Khamenei]],<ref name="nyt-favor">{{cite news|last=Fathi |first=Nazila |url=http://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/07/world/africa/07iht-tehran.4.9063096.html |title=Ahmadinejad loses favor with Khamenei, Iran's top leader |publisher=Nytimes.com |date=2008-01-07 |accessdate=2011-06-18}}</ref> and even as being his "protege."<ref name="Abdo"/> In Ahmadinejad's 2005 inauguration the supreme leader allowed Ahmadinejad to kiss his hand and cheeks in what was called "a sign of closeness and loyalty,"<ref>[http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/world/2009-08/04/content_8513716.htm Ahmadinejad gets key endorsement as Iran president],(Agencies), Updated: 2009-08-04</ref> and after the 2009 election fully endorsed Ahmadinejad against protesters.<ref>[http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/middleeast/iran/5576925/Ayatollah-Ali-Khamenei-backs-Mahmoud-Ahmadinejad-in-address-at-Friday-prayers.html Ayatollah Ali Khamenei backs Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in address at Friday prayers], By Damien McElroy, Foreign Affairs Correspondent, 19 Jun 2009</ref> However as early as January 2008 signs of disagreement between the two men developed over domestic policies,<ref name="nyt-favor"/> and by 2010-11 several sources detected a "growing rift" between Ahmadinejad and Khamenei.<ref name=rift>{{cite news|author=Saeed Kamali Dehghan |url=http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2011/may/05/ahmadinejad-allies-charged-with-sorcery |title=Ahmadinejad allies charged with sorcery |publisher=Guardian |date= 2011-05-05|accessdate=2011-06-18 |___location=London}}</ref> The disagreement has been described as centering on [[Esfandiar Rahim Mashaei]], a top adviser and close confidant of Ahmadinejad<ref name="washpost">[http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/iranian-lawmakers-warn-ahmadinejad-to-back-intelligence-chief-as-political-feud-deepens/2011/04/20/AFDuybAE_story.html Iranian lawmakers warn Ahmadinejad to accept intelligence chief as political feud deepens], Associated Press, April 20, 2011</ref> and opponent of "greater involvement of clerics in politics",<ref name=LATimes/> who was First [[Vice President of Iran]] until being ordered to resign from the cabinet by the supreme leader. In 2009 Ahmadinejad dismissed Intelligence minister [[Gholam-Hossein Mohseni-Eje'i]], an opponent of Mashaei. In April 2011, another Intelligence minister, [[Heydar Moslehi]], resigned after being asked to by Ahmadinejad, but was reinstated by the supreme leader<ref name=Abdo>[http://www.huffingtonpost.com/geneive-abdo/clash-over-mashaei-reveal_b_853329.html Clash Over Mashaei Reveals Fissures Within the Iranian Regime], 04/26/11</ref> within hours.<ref name=csm090511/> Ahmadinejad declined to officially back Moslehi's reinstatement for two weeks and in protest engaged in an "11-day walkout" of cabinet meetings, religious ceremonies, and other official functions.<ref name=rift/><ref name=csm090511>[http://www.csmonitor.com/World/Middle-East/2011/0509/Iran-s-Ahmadinejad-survives-worst-storm-of-his-presidency Iran's Ahmadinejad survives worst storm of his presidency] csmonitor.com, By Scott Peterson, May 9, 2011</ref> Ahmadinejad's actions led to angry public attacks by clerics, parliamentarians and military commanders, who accused him of ignoring orders from the supreme leader.<ref name="washpost"/> Conservative opponents in parliament launched an "impeachment drive" against him,<ref name=LATimes/> four websites with ties to Ahmadinejad reportedly were "filtered and blocked",<ref name=Abdo/> and several people "said to be close" to the president and Mashaei (such as [[Abbas Amirifar]] and [[Mohammed Sharif Malekzadeh]]) were arrested on charges of being "magicians" and invoking [[djinn]]s.<ref name=rift/> On 6 May 2011 it was reported that Ahmadinejad had been given an ultimatum to accept the leader's intervention or resign,<ref>[http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2011/may/06/iran-supreme-leader-ahmadinejad-minister Iran's supreme leader tells Ahmadinejad: accept minister or quit], Saeed Kamali Dehghan, guardian.co.uk, 6 May 2011</ref> and on 8 May he "apparently bowed" to the reinstatement, welcoming back Moslehi to a cabinet meeting.<ref name="washpost">[http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/middle-east/irans-ahmadinejad-affirms-khamenei-decision-tensions-remain/2011/05/08/AFpK82QG_print.html Iran’s Ahmadinejad affirms Khamenei decision, tensions remain], By Thomas Erdbrink, 2011 May 8</ref> The events have been said to have "humiliated and weakened" Ahmadinejad, though the president has denied that there was any rift between the two,<ref name="washpost"/> and according to the semiofficial [[Fars News Agency]] stated that his relationship with the supreme leader "is that of a father and a son."<ref name=LATimes>[http://www.latimes.com/health/la-fg-iran-intelligence-20110502,0,4704799.story Spy flap weakens Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad], LA Times, May 2, 2011</ref>
==Foreign relations==
{{main|Foreign policy of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad}}
[[File:Dmitry Medvedev in Azerbaijan 18 November 2010-4.jpeg|thumb|right|Ahmadinejad with leaders of the [[Shanghai Cooperation Organisation]]]]
[[File:Lula e Ahmadinejad 2010.jpg|thumb|right|Ahmadinejad meeting with [[Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva]] in [[Tehran]]]]
During Ahmadinejad's tenure as President of Iran the foreign policy of the country took a different approach from the previous administration. Relations with the West generally soured while relations with other parts of the world, including Africa and Latin America, were on the ascendance. In light of the calls for sanctions on Iran for its nuclear weapons programme, Ahmadinejad and his foreign minister, Manouchehr Mottaki, traveled extensively throughout the two regions, as well as hosted other leaders. Relations with the [[Bolivarian Alliance for the Americas|ALBA]] states, and [[Venezuela]], [[Bolivia]], and [[Ecuador]], in particular, were most strengthened. Relations with America during the [[Presidency of George W. Bush|Bush administration]] and Israel were weakened.
Ahmadinejad is an outspoken critic of the [[United States]], [[Israel]], and the [[United Kingdom]].<ref>{{cite news|url=http://fr.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?pagename=JPost/JPArticle/ShowFull&cid=1215331135767|title=Ahmadinejad blames West for AIDS|publisher=Associated Press via [[The Jerusalem Post]]|date=July 29, 2008}}</ref><ref name="President Ahmadinejad, Part 2">[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QW1DltEt5z4 President Ahmadinejad, Part 2] [[CBS]] via [[YouTube]]</ref>
==Israel and Palestine==
{{main|Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and Israel}}
He abides by [[Iran]]'s long-standing policy of refusing to recognize [[Israel]] as a legitimate state.<ref>"[http://articles.cnn.com/2006-04-24/world/iran.nuclear_1_nuclear-activity-nuclear-issue-iranian-president-mahmoud-ahmadinejad?_s=PM:WORLD Iran president says UN sanctions unlikely]", ''CNN'', April 24, 2006.</ref>
He was embroiled in controversy regarding statements he made about the [[Holocaust]] and for commenting that "the [[Military occupation|occupying]] [[regime]]" would, according to various translations, be eliminated, or "[[Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and Israel#2005 "World Without Zionism" speech|vanish from the pages of time]]." The ''New York Times'' reported this as a call for the destruction of the [[State of Israel]] when the phrase was translated as "wiped off the map" by Ahmadinejad's official website and Iranian state run media.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://web.archive.org/web/20110716100837/http://www.president.ir/en/?ArtID=10114 |title=Presidency of The Islamic Republic of Iran News Service |publisher=President.ir |date=2008-06-03 |accessdate=2010-09-07}}</ref><ref>{{cite news| url=http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSL0261250620080603 | work=Reuters | title=Ahmadinejad says Israel will "disappear" | date=2008-06-03}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.nytimes.com/2005/10/26/world/africa/26iht-iran.html |title=Wipe Israel 'off the map' Iranian says |publisher=New York Times |date=2005-27-10 |accessdate=2005-27-10 |first=Nazila |last=Fathi}}</ref> American scholar, public intellectual, and historian of the modern Middle East and South Asia, [[Juan Cole]] says the word "map" doesn't appear in the farsi language. It has also been claimed that he said that "Israel's regime will be wiped off the map", not the actual state.<ref>Steele, Jonathan. [http://commentisfree.guardian.co.uk/jonathan_steele/2006/06/post_155.html Lost in translation], ''[[The Guardian]]'', June 14, 2006. </ref> On April 21, 2012, Dan Meridor, Israel's Deputy Prime Minister, was reported by the Blaze <ref>{{cite news|url=http://news.yahoo.com/israeli-deputy-pm-ahmadinejad-didn-t-actually-israel-215412630.html;_ylt=AqKsX8kVzpOfG3Lv5jhPV1q1qHQA;_ylu=X3oDMTQ4ZWNndXNqBG1pdANUb3BTdG9yeSBXb3JsZFNGIE1pZGRsZUVhc3RTU0YEcGtnAzc0NGY2YmE3LTQ1YzctM2Y0My05ODkzLWY3Y2E3MjUzOGI1OARwb3MDMQRzZWMDdG9wX3N0b3J5BHZlcgM4N2ZkNzYyMC04YmZjLTExZTEtYjNiZi1iY2NjYzNhMjk1ZGY-;_ylg=X3oDMTFrM25vcXFyBGludGwDdXMEbGFuZwNlbi11cwRwc3RhaWQDBHBzdGNhdAMEcHQDc2VjdGlvbnMEdGVzdAM-;_ylv=3}}</ref> to have acknowledged President Ahmadinejad never said Israel Must Be ’Wiped off the Map’.
He advocates "free elections" for the region, and believes [[Palestinian people|Palestinians]] need a stronger voice in the region's future.<ref>"UN Scrutiny Won't Make Iran Quit Nuclear Effort, President Says" Naila Fathi, ''New York Times''. January 15, 2006.[http://www.nytimes.com/2006/01/15/international/middleeast/15tehran.html?ex=1294981200&en=aa775eeb6ae97fbd&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss U.N. Scrutiny Won't Make Iran Quit Nuclear Effort, President Says - New York Times]</ref> Criticism of him in the [[West]] has been coupled with accusations of [[Holocaust denial|describing the Holocaust as a myth]]<ref name = "InternationalList1">
* [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/4529198.stm "Holocaust comments spark outrage"], BBC News, Accessed 14-12-2005.
* [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/4378948.stm "Iran leader's comments attacked"], BBC News, Accessed 27-01-2008.
* Esfandiari, Golnaz. [http://www.rferl.org/featuresarticle/2005/12/6f3acbdf-d5f9-4ba1-8c9d-278c700ae2ea.html "Iran: President's Latest Comments About Israel Spark Further Condemnation"]. Radio Free Europe. Accessed 28-01-2008.
* Vick, Karl and Mary Jordan. [http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/10/27/AR2005102702221.html "World Leaders Condemn Iranian's Call to Wipe Israel 'Off the Map'"]. [[Washington Post]]. Accessed 28-10-2005.
* [http://www.ncccusa.org/news/051216Ahmadinejad.html "NCC Condemns Ahmadinejad’s Holocaust Statement"]. [[National Council of Churches]]. Accessed 16-12-2007.
* Slackman, Michael. [http://www.iht.com/articles/2006/08/24/news/iran.php "In Tehran, a riposte to the Danish cartoons"]. [[The New York Times]], Accessed 24-09-2007.
* [http://www.dw-world.de/dw/article/0,2144,2051820,00.html "Germans Protest Against Ahmadinejad, Racism As Cup Opens"]. [[Deutsche Welle]], Accessed 11-06-2006.
* [http://www.cnn.com/2005/WORLD/meast/10/27/ahmadinejad.reaction/index.html "Annan: 'Dismay' over Iranian comments on Israel"]. CNN. Accessed 27-09-2007.
* Fathi, Nazila. [http://www.nytimes.com/2005/10/30/weekinreview/30iran.html?ex=1161230400&en=26f07fc5b7543417&ei=5070 "Text of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's Speech"]. New York Times. Accessed 17-10-2006.
* [http://www.boston.com/news/world/articles/2006/12/15/iran_vote_seen_as_referendum_on_ahmadinejad/ "Iran vote seen as referendum on Ahmadinejad"]. [[The Boston Globe]]. Accessed 27-12-2006.
* Bronner, Ethan. [http://www.nytimes.com/2006/06/11/weekinreview/11bronner.html?ex=1307678400&en=efa2bd266224e880&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss "Just How Far Did They Go, Those Words Against Israel?"] The New York Times. Accessed 11-06-2006.
* [http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2006%5C02%5C22%5Cstory_22-2-2006_pg4_15 "Ahmadinejad misunderstood, says Iran"]. The Daily Times of Pakistan. Retrieved 22-02-2006.</ref><ref>[http://www.cnn.com/2005/WORLD/meast/12/14/iran.israel/ "Iranian leader: Holocaust a 'myth'"]. [[CNN]]. 14-12-2006. {{dead link|date=February 2011}}</ref> and of statements influenced by "classic [[anti-Semitic]] ideas,"<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1116678.html|title=Diplomats walk out as Ahmadinejad rails against Israel in UN|publisher=[[Haaretz]]|date=2009-09-24}}</ref> which has led to accusations of [[anti-Semitism]],<ref name = "AntisemitismList1">
* [http://www.guardian.co.uk/iran/story/0,,1795045,00.html "Iran team face mass protest"], [[The Guardian]], Accessed 11-06-2007.
* [http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/832315.html "Eurovision may ban Israeli entry due to lyrics on nuclear war"], [[Haaretz]], Accessed 03-02-2007.
* [http://www.dw-world.de/dw/article/0,2144,1907670,00.html "Iran's Rhetoric on Holocaust Anger German Muslims"], [[Deutsche Welle]], Accessed 18-02-2007.
* Smith-Spark, Laura. [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/5012182.stm "Racism fears dog World Cup build-up"]. [[BBC News]]. Accessed 26-05-2006.
* [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/4653666.stm "Annan condemns Holocaust denial"]. [[BBC News]]. Accessed 27-01-2006.
* "He was defeated by the even more hard-line and anti-Semitic Mahmoud Ahmadinejad...". [[Joel C. Rosenberg]]. ''Epicenter: Why the Current Rumblings in the Middle East Will Change Your Future'', Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., 2006, p. 109, ISBN 978-1-4143-1135-7
* [http://www.nytimes.com/2006/01/13/international/middleeast/13israel.html "Israel Wants West to Deal More Urgently With Iran"] The New York Times. Accessed 28-03-2008.
* [http://www.ncccusa.org/news/051216Ahmadinejad.html "NCC Condemns Ahmadinejad’s Holocaust Statement"], National Council of Churches. Retrieved 16-12-2005.</ref> though he has denied these accusations, saying that he "respects Jews very much" and that he was not "passing judgment" on the Holocaust.<ref name="President Ahmadinejad, Part 2"/><ref>{{cite news|last=Namiech |first=Ophelie |url=http://www.nydailynews.com/opinions/2009/10/02/2009-10-02_how_a_nice_jewish_girl_met_iranian_madman_mahmoud_ahmadinejad.html |title=How a nice Jewish girl met Iranian madman Mahmoud Ahmadinejad |publisher=Nydailynews.com |date=2009-10-02 |accessdate=2010-09-07 | ___location=New York}}</ref><ref name = "Ahmadinejad_Columbia">{{cite web
| url = http://ahmadinejadspeech.blogspot.com/
| title = Ahmadinejad's speech @ Columbia university – a transcript
| accessdate = 2009-02-02
| date = 25 September 2007
}}
</ref><ref name = "MA_respect_Jews">{{cite news
| url = http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/5368458.stm
| title = Iranian leader 'not anti-Semite'
| accessdate = 2007-04-08
| date = 21 September 2006
| publisher = BBC
| quote = 'Some people think if they accuse me of being anti-Jew they can solve the problem. No, I am not anti-Jew. I respect them very much.'
}}</ref>
On [[al-Quds]] Day in September 2010 criticized the Palestinian Authority over its president's decision to renew direct peace talks with Israel saying the talks are "stillborn" and "doomed to fail", urging the Palestinians to continue armed resistance to Israel.<ref>[http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/sep/03/ahmadinejad-middle-east-talks-fail Middle East peace talks are 'doomed to fail', says Ahmadinejad | World news | guardian.co.uk]. Guardian. Retrieved on 2011-02-03.</ref><ref>[http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE6821EX20100903 Iran's Ahmadinejad calls on Palestinians to fight on]. Reuters. Retrieved on 2011-02-03.</ref> He said that [[Mahmoud Abbas]] had no authority to negotiate on behalf of the Palestinians.<ref>{{cite news|author=Jeremy Bowen |url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-11175834 |title=Mid-East talks doomed, says Iranian leader Ahmadinejad |publisher=Bbc.co.uk |date=2010-09-03 |accessdate=2011-06-18}}</ref><ref>[http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/middleeast/iran/7980335/Ahmadinejad-pours-scorn-on-Middle-East-peace-talks.html Video: Ahmadinejad pours scorn on Middle East peace talks]. Telegraph (2010-09-03). Retrieved on 2011-02-03.</ref> Nabil Abu Rudeineh, a spokesman for the Palestinian Authority, fired back, saying, Ahmadinejad "does not represent the Iranian people,..., is not entitled to talk about Palestine, or the President of Palestine"<ref>[http://articles.cnn.com/2010-09-05/world/iran.west.bank.comments_1_palestinian-authority-peace-talks-nabil-abu-rudeineh?_s=PM:WORLD Iran continues back-and-forth barbs with Palestinians over peace talks – CNN]. Articles.cnn.com (2010-09-05). Retrieved on 2011-02-03.</ref><ref>[http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/world/progress-of-middle-east-peace-talks-a-surprise/story-e6frg6so-1225914498801 Progress of Middle East peace talks 'a surprise']. The Australian (2010-09-06). Retrieved on 2011-02-03.</ref>
===United States===
In September 2010 he caused yet-another controversy at the 65th session of the [[United Nations]] [[United Nations General Assembly|General Assembly]] by claiming that [[September 11 attacks opinion polls|most people believed]] the [[9/11 conspiracy theories|United States government was behind]] the [[September 11 attacks|9/11 attacks]] and later called for an inquiry, stating: "The fact-finding mission can shed light on who the perpetrators were, who is al-Qaeda... where does it exist? Who was it backed by and supported? All these should come to light."<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k4phNuwx8Hs|title=YouTube: Full speech by Mahmoud Ahmadinejad at UN|date=23 September 2010|publisher=[[RT (TV network)|Russia Today]]|accessdate=24 September 2010}}</ref> The speech triggered a mass walkout, and the U.S. president [[Barack Obama]] described the claims as "inexcuseable", "offensive" and "hateful".<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-11407326|title=Barack Obama condemns Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's UN speech|publisher=BBC|accessdate=24 September 2010 | date=2010-09-25}}</ref> In 2010, Ahmadinejad reiterated the 9/11 conspiracy, and wrote: <blockquote>
"Establishing an independent and impartial committee of investigation, which would determine the roots and causes of the regrettable event of 9/11, is the demand of all the peoples of the region and the world. [...] Any opposition to this legal and human demand means that 9/11 was premeditated in order to achieve the goals of occupation and of confrontation with the nations.<ref>[http://www.memri.org/report/en/0/0/0/0/0/0/4681.htm In Beirut, Iranian President Ahmadinejad Reiterates 9/11 Conspiracy, Accuses the West in Al-Hariri Assassination] The Middle East Media Research Institute. Special Dispatch No.3304. October 18, 2010</ref></blockquote> He made similar comments in 2011.<ref>Cohen, Dudi. [http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4086816,00.html "Iranian president questions Holocaust, 9/11."] ''Ynetnews''. 25 June 2011. 25 June 2011.</ref>
Ahmadinejad was criticized for his claims in an article appearing in [[Al-Qaeda]]'s magazine. The article claimed Ahmadinejad was [[jealous]] of Al-Qaeda.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/09/28/al-qaeda-ahmadinejad-end-911-theories_n_985265.html |title=Al Qaeda Calls On Mahmoud Ahmadinejad To End 'Ridiculous' 9/11 Conspiracy Theories Huffington Post September 28, 2011 |publisher=Huffingtonpost.com |date= 2011-09-28|accessdate=2011-11-21 |first=Mark |last=Hanrahan}}</ref>
==Personal life==
He was married to Azam Sadat Farahi on 12 June 1981 in [[Tehran]].<ref>{{cite web|author=funshahd|url=http://www.funshad.com/View/aroosi-ahmadinejad.html|title=Where and When Ahmadinejad was marrie?|publisher=Funshad.com|date=2009-07-12|accessdate=2011-08-13}}</ref> Farahi was a classmate of Ahmadinejad when he studied at the [[Iran University of Science and Technology]]. They have three children, including one daughter, Fatemeh, and two sons, Mehdi and Alireza.<ref>{{cite web|author=|url=http://fr.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1145961353570&pagename=JPost/JPArticle/ShowFull |title=Bio: Ahmadinejad |publisher=Fr.j post.com |date= |accessdate=2011-06-18}}</ref> His older son, Mehdi, married the daughter of Ahmadinejad's chief of staff, [[Esfandiar Rahim Mashaei]] in 2007, and his younger son, Alireza, is married to the niece of former [[Military of Iran|military general]], [[Mahmoud Kaveh]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.onlineha.com/19365-%D9%BE%D8%B3%D8%B1-%DA%A9%D9%88%DA%86%DA%A9-%D8%A7%D8%AD%D9%85%D8%AF%DB%8C-%D9%86%DA%98%D8%A7%D8%AF-%D8%A7%D8%B2%D8%AF%D9%88%D8%A7%D8%AC-%DA%A9%D8%B1%D8%AF/ |title=Ahmadinejad's younger son was married |publisher=onlineha.con |date=2011-03-12 |accessdate=2011-08-13}}</ref> All of his children studied at the [[Amirkabir University of Technology]] (Tehran Polytechnic).<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.newsmax.com/archives/articles/2006/12/11/164728.shtml |title=Iran's Ahmadinejad Heckled at University |publisher=Newsmax.com |date=2006-12-12 |accessdate=2011-06-18}}</ref> His son in law is Mehdi Khorshidi.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.tabnak.ir/fa/news/193596/%D9%87%D9%85%D8%B1%D8%A7%D9%87%D8%A7%D9%86-%D8%AE%D8%A7%D9%86%D9%88%D8%A7%D8%AF%DA%AF%DB%8C-%D8%A7%D8%AD%D9%85%D8%AF%DB%8C-%D9%86%DA%98%D8%A7%D8%AF-%D8%AF%D8%B1-%D8%B3%D9%81%D8%B1-%D8%A8%D9%87-%D8%A2%D9%85%D8%B1%DB%8C%DA%A9%D8%A7 |title=President's Family |publisher=Tabnak.ir |date= |accessdate=2011-11-21}}</ref>
==See also==
{{Portal box|Iran|Biography}}
* [[2006 Iranian sumptuary law controversy]]
* Advisors to the president: [[Hamid Mowlana]], [[Mohammad-Ali Ramin]], [[Ali Akbar Javanfekr]]
* Ayatollah [[Mohammad-Taqi Mesbah-Yazdi]]
* [[Politics of Iran]]
==References==
{{Reflist|30em}}
== Further reading ==
* {{citation |authorlink=David Harris (protestor) |last=Harris |first=David |title=The Crisis: the President, the Prophet, and the Shah—1979 and the Coming of Militant Islam |publisher=Little, Brown |year=2004 |___location=New York |isbn=978-0-316-32394-9 }}
* [http://www.jcpa.org/text/ahmadinejad-incitement.pdf "Referral of Iranian President Ahmadinejad on the Charge of Incitement to Commit Genocide"] by Justus Reid Weiner, Esq., with Amb. Meir Rosenne, Prof. Elie Wiesel, Amb. Dore Gold, Irit Kohn, Adv., Amb. Eytan Bentsur, and MK Dan Naveh
* Ali Rahnema, [http://www.themontrealreview.com/2009/Superstition-as-Ideology-in-Iranian-Politics-From-Majlesi-to-Ahmadinejad-by-Ali-Rahnema.php ''Superstition as Ideology in Iranian Politics: From Majlesi to Ahmadinejad''], Cambridge University Press, 2011 (Reviewed in [http://www.themontrealreview.com/2009/Superstition-as-Ideology-in-Iranian-Politics-From-Majlesi-to-Ahmadinejad-by-Ali-Rahnema.php The Montréal Review]), ISBN: 978-0-521-18221-8
==External links==
{{Sister project links|s=Author:Mahmoud Ahmadinejad}}
* [http://www.president.ir/en/ Official website of the President of Iran]
* [http://www.ahmadinejad.ir Blog of President Ahmadinejad]
* [http://www.cidob.org/es/documentacion/biografias_lideres_politicos/asia/iran/mahmoud_ahmadinejad Biography] at [[CIDOB Foundation]]
* [http://www.irannegah.com/video_browse.aspx?keyword=ahmadinejad Video Archive of President Ahmadinejad] at ''Irannegah.com''
*{{C-SPAN|mahmoudahmadinejad}}
*{{Charlie Rose view|6173}}
*{{IMDb name|2258253}}
*{{Worldcat id|id=lccn-n2006-56194}}
*{{Aljazeeratopic|person/mahmoud-ahmadinejad}}
*{{Dawntopic|mahmoud-ahmadinejad}}
*{{Guardiantopic|world/mahmoud-ahmadinejad}}
*{{Haaretztopic|Mahmoud%20Ahmadinejad}}
*{{JPosttopic|Mahmoud_Ahmadinejad}}
*{{NYTtopic|people/a/mahmoud_ahmadinejad}}
*{{WSJtopic|person/A/mahmoud-ahmadinejad/5388}}
* [http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1570714,00.html People Who Mattered: Mahmoud Ahmadinejad] ''[[Time (magazine)|Time]]'', 16 December 2006
* [http://andrewsullivan.theatlantic.com/the_daily_dish/2009/06/the-results-as-they-came-in.html The Results As They Came In], [[Andrew Sullivan]], ''[[The Atlantic]]'', 13 June 2009
{{s-start}}
{{s-off}}
{{s-bef|before=[[Hossein Taheri]]|as=Governor of East Azerbaijan}}
{{s-ttl|title=Governor of [[Ardabil Province|Ardabil]]|years=1993–1997}}
{{s-aft|after=Javad Negarandeh}}
{{s-break}}
{{s-bef|before=[[Mohammad-Hassan Malekmadani]]}}
{{s-ttl|title=[[List of mayors of Tehran|Mayor of Tehran]]|years=2003–2005}}
{{s-aft|after=[[Mohammad-Bagher Ghalibaf]]}}
{{s-break}}
{{s-bef|before=[[Mohammad Khatami]]}}
{{s-ttl|title=[[President of Iran]]|years=2005–present}}
{{s-inc}}
{{s-break}}
{{s-ppo}}
{{s-bef|before=[[Mehdi Chamran]]}}
{{s-ttl|title= Leader of [[Alliance of Builders of Islamic Iran]]|years=2004–present}}
{{s-inc}}
{{s-break}}
{{s-dip}}
{{s-bef|before=[[Abdelaziz Bouteflika]]}}
{{s-ttl|title=Chairperson of the [[Group of 15]]|years=2006–2010}}
{{s-aft|after=[[Mahinda Rajapaksa]]}}
{{s-break}}
{{s-prec|Iran}}
{{s-bef|before=[[Ali Khamenei]]|as=[[Supreme Leader of Iran|Supreme Leader]]}}
{{s-ttl|title=Order of Precedence of Iran<br><small>''as President''</small>}}
{{s-aft|after=[[Ali Larijani]]|as=[[List of Speakers of the Parliament of Iran|Speaker of Parliament]]}}
{{s-end}}
{{Navboxes
| list =
{{Mahmoud Ahmadinejad}}
{{Presidents of Iran}}
{{Current OPEC leaders}}
{{Current ECO Leaders}}
{{Iranian presidential election, 2009 footer}}
{{The Green Path of Hope}}
}}
{{Persondata <!-- Metadata: see [[Wikipedia:Persondata]]. -->
|NAME= Ahmadinejad, Mahmoud
|ALTERNATIVE NAMES=
|SHORT DESCRIPTION= 6th [[President of Iran]]
|DATE OF BIRTH= 28 October 1956
|PLACE OF BIRTH= [[Aradan, Iran]]
|DATE OF DEATH=
|PLACE OF DEATH=
}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ahmadinejad, Mahmoud}}
[[Category:1956 births]]
[[Category:Antisemitism in Iran]]
[[Category:9/11 conspiracy theorists]]
[[Category:Alliance of Builders of Islamic Iran politicians]]
[[Category:Current national leaders]]
[[Category:Holocaust deniers]]
[[Category:Holocaust denial in Iran]]
[[Category:Iranian anti-communists]]
[[Category:Iranian civil engineers]]
[[Category:Iranian governors]]
[[Category:Islamic Society of Engineers politicians]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:Mahmoud Ahmadinejad|Mahmoud Ahmadinejad]]
[[Category:Mayors of Tehran]]
[[Category:People from Semnan Province]]
[[Category:Presidents of Iran]]
[[Category:Shi'a politicians]]
[[Category:Iran University of Science and Technology alumni]]
[[Category:Iran University of Science and Technology faculty]]
{{Link GA|ar}}
{{Link GA|zh}}
[[af:Mahmoud Ahmadinejad]]
[[ar:محمود أحمدي نجاد]]
[[az:Mahmud Əhmədinejad]]
[[bn:মাহমুদ আহমাদিনেজাদ]]
[[zh-min-nan:Mahmoud Ahmadinejad]]
[[be:Махмуд Ахмадзінежад]]
[[bcl:Mahmoud Ahmadinejad,]]
[[bg:Махмуд Ахмадинежад]]
[[bar:Mahmud Ahmadinedschad]]
[[bo:མའ་མའོ་སྒྲི་ཨ་མ་སྒྲེན་ཅ་ཊི།]]
[[bs:Mahmud Ahmedinedžad]]
[[ca:Mahmud Ahmadinejad]]
[[ceb:Mahmud Ahmadinezhād]]
[[cs:Mahmúd Ahmadínežád]]
[[cy:Mahmoud Ahmadinejad]]
[[da:Mahmoud Ahmadinejad]]
[[de:Mahmud Ahmadinedschad]]
[[et:Maḩmūd Aḩmadīnezhād]]
[[el:Μαχμούτ Αχμεντινετζάντ]]
[[es:Mahmud Ahmadineyad]]
[[eo:Mahmud Ahmadineĵad]]
[[eu:Mahmoud Ahmadinejad]]
[[fa:محمود احمدینژاد]]
[[fo:Mahmoud Ahmadinejad]]
[[fr:Mahmoud Ahmadinejad]]
[[ga:Mahmoud Ahmadinejad]]
[[gl:Mahmoud Ahmadinejad]]
[[ko:마무드 아마디네자드]]
[[ha:Mahmoud Ahmadinejad]]
[[hy:Մահմուդ Ահմադինեժադ]]
[[hi:महमूद अहमदीनेज़ाद]]
[[hr:Mahmud Ahmedinedžad]]
[[io:Mahmoud Ahmadinejad]]
[[id:Mahmud Ahmadinejad]]
[[is:Mahmoud Ahmadinejad]]
[[it:Mahmud Ahmadinejad]]
[[he:מחמוד אחמדינז'אד]]
[[jv:Mahmud Ahmadinejad]]
[[kn:ಮಹ್ಮೂದ್ ಅಹ್ಮದೀನೆಜಾದ್]]
[[ka:მაჰმუდ აჰმადინეჟადი]]
[[kk:Ахмадинежад Махмуд]]
[[ku:Mehmûdê Ehmedînejad]]
[[la:Mahmudus Ahmadinejad]]
[[lv:Mahmūds Ahmadīnežāds]]
[[lb:Mahmud Ahmadinedschad]]
[[lt:Mahmudas Ahmadinedžadas]]
[[hu:Mahmud Ahmadinezsád]]
[[mk:Махмуд Ахмадинежад]]
[[ml:മഹ്മൂദ് അഹ്മദീനെജാദ്]]
[[mr:महमूद अहमदिनेजाद]]
[[arz:محمود احمدى نجاد]]
[[mzn:محمود احمدینژاد]]
[[ms:Mahmoud Ahmadinejad]]
[[nl:Mahmoud Ahmadinejad]]
[[ja:マフムード・アフマディーネジャード]]
[[nap:Mahmud Ahmadinejad]]
[[no:Mahmoud Ahmadinejad]]
[[nn:Mahmoud Ahmadinejad]]
[[oc:Mahmoud Ahmadinejad]]
[[uz:Mahmud Ahmadinajod]]
[[ps:محمود احمدي نژاد]]
[[pl:Mahmud Ahmadineżad]]
[[pt:Mahmoud Ahmadinejad]]
[[ro:Mahmud Ahmadinejad]]
[[ru:Ахмадинежад, Махмуд]]
[[sq:Mahmud Ahmedinezhad]]
[[scn:Mahmud Ahmadinejad]]
[[simple:Mahmoud Ahmadinejad]]
[[sk:Mahmúd Ahmadínežád]]
[[so:Maxamuud Axmadinajaad]]
[[sr:Махмуд Ахмадинежад]]
[[sh:Mahmoud Ahmadinejad]]
[[fi:Mahmud Ahmadinežad]]
[[sv:Mahmoud Ahmadinejad]]
[[tl:Mahmoud Ahmadinejad]]
[[ta:மகுமூத் அகமதிநெச்சாத்]]
[[th:มะห์มูด อะห์มะดีเนจาด]]
[[tg:Маҳмуд Аҳмадинижод]]
[[tr:Mahmud Ahmedinejad]]
[[uk:Махмуд Ахмадінежад]]
[[ur:محمود احمدی نژاد]]
[[ug:ئەھمىدى نىجات]]
[[vi:Mahmud Ahmadinezhad]]
[[yi:מאכמוד אכמעדיניזשאד]]
[[yo:Mahmoud Ahmadinejad]]
[[zh-yue:艾哈邁迪內賈德]]
[[zh:马哈茂德·艾哈迈迪内贾德]]
| 