Ayatollah Gholamreza Hassani (Persian: غلامرضا حسنی, Azerbaijani: Qulamrza Həsəni) 21 July 1927 – 21 May 2018)[3] was the previous Friday prayer, first First imam of Masjid-e-Jamé mosque of the city of Urmia in northwest Iran after Iranian Revolution; member of the Islamic Consultative Assembly in the first term from electoral district of Urmia and representative of the Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei in West Azarbaijan Province.[4]
Gholamreza Hassani Bozorg-Abad | |
|---|---|
غلامرضا حسنی بزرگ‌آباد | |
 Hassani in January 2014 | |
| Personal | |
| Born | 21 July 1927 |
| Died | 21 May 2018 (aged 90) Urmia, Iran |
| Religion | Islam |
| Nationality | Iranian |
| Era | Modern |
| Region | Iran |
| Creed | Shia Islam, The Fourteen Infallibles |
| Main interest(s) | Islamic History and Islamic leadership doctrine |
| Notable idea(s) | Sunnism is invasion of Nubuwwah. |
| Notable work(s) | Divine Leadership and Quran, Fiqh and Jihad |
| Muslim leader | |
Influenced by | |
Influenced | |
| Years active | 1955–1979 Leader of Islamic militia movement against Pahlavi dynasty 1970–2014 as Friday prayer leader of Urmia |
| Successor | Ayatollah Qurayshi |
| Member of the Iranian Parliament[1] | |
| In office March, 1980 – August, 1980 | |
| Representative of the Supreme Leader in West Azerbaijan and Imam Jumu'ah of Urmia | |
| In office 1980–2014 | |
| Succeeded by | Seyed Mehdi Ghoreishi |
| Personal details | |
| Children | 3 |
| Alma mater | Qom Hawza |
| Awards |  Order of Courage (1st class)[2] |
Career
editHe has been described as one of the most, if not the most, conservative voices in Iran and Shia Islam world.[5] He is known for the highly challenging religious and political positions taken and his ultimate opposition to Caliphate and Anti-Sunni theories advocated in his controversial Friday sermons, which have reportedly drawn criticism from many of the Sunni leaders, Iranian reformists, Pan-Turkists, radical left organisations, Kurdish nationalists with adherence to Sunni tradition and Southern Azerbaijan patriot movement and been accused by "Iranian political satirists in their works."[6] In the aftermath of the 1979 revolution in Iran, he led the militia Javanmardan and fought the Kurds. He was involved in massacre in the village Qarna.[7] After a failed assassination attempt on him in 1981 he was flown to Ireland for treatment.[7] Hassani's devotion to the Islamic Revolution was such that in 1983, several years after the Revolution, he informed authorities of the hiding place of his son, Rashid,[8] a member of the opposition leftist guerilla group Fadayian Khalq, who was then executed by firing squad with Hassani's approval.[6] Hassani is quoted as telling an American journalist, "Abraham didn't sacrifice his son, but I did. Even today, I don't regret it."[5]
In 2011 he was reportedly presented with the national "Medal of Bravery", "one of the most significant official medals awarded in Iran,"[6] by president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. The medal was reportedly awarded for his record of resistance against the Shah's regime prior to the Islamic Revolution, against the Kurdish opposition in the first years of the Islamic Republic, and for his participation in the Iraq-Iran War.[6] In February 2014 he was dismissed from his post as a representative of Ali Khamenei.[7]
Personal life and death
editAt the time of his death, Hassani had two living wives.[9] He has seven sons and four daughters.[5]
Hassani's children have become known figures in various fields with contrasting political leanings, most recently his granddaughter Ana Diamond has been recognized for her human rights activism in the United Kingdom following her false trial, imprisonment, and acquittal in Iran.[10]
Hassani died on 21 May 2018 at the age of 90.[11]
References
edit- ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 26 August 2015.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) - ^ نشان‌های دولتی در روزهای پایانی خاتمی و احمدی‌نژاد به چه کسانی رسید؟. Tasnim News Agency (in Persian). 24 August 2013. Retrieved 15 April 2016.
- ^ "شیخ حسنی امام جمعه سابق ارومیه دارفانی را وداع گفت". 21 May 2018.
- ^ "Iran: Top cleric says women without veils must die" Archived 7 December 2018 at the Wayback Machine | adnkronos.com | 19 December 2009
- ^ a b c "Praying for a Century That Is Not the American One" By John F. Burns | nytimes.com | 1 January 2000
- ^ a b c d "Qarna Massacre Mullah Awarded with ‘Medal of Bravery’ in Iran" Archived 25 March 2012 at the Wayback Machine | insideofiran.org | 5 April 2011
- ^ a b c "Controversial Iranian Cleric Behind Qarna Massacre Loses Job". rudaw.net. Retrieved 1 May 2020.
- ^ "The Biography Of Great Martyr Br. Rashid Hasani" | referl.org | 14 September 2008
- ^ "حجت‌الاسلام قریشی به امامت جمعه ارومیه و نماینده ولی فقیه در آذربایجان غربی منصوب شد/ تقدیر از مجاهدت و خدمات حجت‌الاسلام حسنی". Supreme Leader Website. Retrieved 6 August 2015.
- ^ "Nazanin's daughter deserves to have her mother next to her". 22 September 2020. Archived from the original on 27 October 2020. Retrieved 24 October 2020.
- ^ "غلامرضا حسنی، امام جمعه سابق ارومیه درگذشت". 21 May 2018.
