Iran's leader appoints new members to cultural council

May 7, 2007

The Supreme Leader of Iran, Ali Khamenei, appointed 22 members to the main body that determines the cultural policy of Iran. The body is known as the Supreme Council of the Cultural Revolution.

Khamenei's decree allows the appointees to serve for three years on the cultural council. Appointees like Ahmad Jannati, Mir-Hossein Moussavi, and the others are long-time allies of Khamenei. Gholam-Ali Haddad-Adel's daughter is married to one of Khamenei's sons.


 * 1) (Secretary of the Guardian Council) Haj Sheikh Ahmad Jannati
 * 2) (Majlis Speaker) Gholam-Ali Haddad-Adel
 * 3) (Former Vice-President) Hassan Habibi
 * 4) (Former Prime Minister) Mir-Hossein Moussavi
 * 5) Ahmad Ahmadi
 * 6) Ali Shariatmadari
 * 7) Reza Davari
 * 8) (Former Foreign Minister and Leadership Advisor for Foreign and International Affairs) Ali-Akbar Velayati
 * 9) Iraj Fazel
 * 10) (Former Vice-President) Mohammad-Reza Aref
 * 11) Mehdi Golshani
 * 12) (Top nuclear negotiator and Secretary of the Supreme National Security Council) Ali Larijani
 * 13) Ali-Reza Sadr-Hosseini
 * 14) Mohammad-Ali Keynejad
 * 15) Mohsen Ghomi
 * 16) Hassan Rahimpour
 * 17) Mohammad-Reza Mokhber
 * 18) Sadeq Vaezzadeh
 * 19) Ali-Akbar Sadeqi-Rashad
 * 20) (Head of the Islamic Culture and Communication Organization) Mahmoud Mohammadi Araqi
 * 21) (Deputy Minister of Science, Research and Technology for Education) Mansour Kabkanian
 * 22) (Member of Board of Instructors of Tehran University's Faculty of Social Sciences) Hossein Kachuian.

The cultural council has to ensure that Iran can counter the Western culture with Islam and works closely with the Ministry of Islamic Culture and Guidance.