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Source: http://jcpa.org/article/choosing-a-new-leader-in-iran/
The Long Road to Choosing Iran's Next Leader
(Institute for Contemporary Affairs-Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs) Lt. Col. (ret.) Michael Segall - In September, Iran's Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei (now 75) was hospitalized for prostate surgery, and rumors again circulated that he has prostate cancer. On Oct. 21, Ayatollah Mohammadreza Mahdavi Kani died at the age of 83. He had been chairman of Iran's Assembly of Experts, a body of 86 clerics entrusted with electing Iran's next Leader. Former president Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani 80, seeks a central role in determining Khamenei's successor. At present the short list of names for the post of chairman includes Rafsanjani. He is considered a "darling" of the Western states, which continue to view him as someone who can put Iran on a course of constructive dialogue on various issues including its nuclear program. Rafsanjani was among the Iranian leaders who tried, without success, to contain or limit the Revolutionary Guard's increasing influence over the years and who recognized the danger of its ascendancy. He also continues to be regarded as their historic rival.