Gholamreza Hassani

Islamic scholar Gholamreza Hassani غلامرضا حسنی
Hassani in January 2014
Title	Ayatollah
Born	(1928-08-30) 30 August 1928 Urmia, Islamic Republic of Iran
Era	Modern
Region	Iran
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
Influenced by Abdul-Adhim ibn Abdillah al-Hassani, Imam Ruhollah Khomeinii
Influenced Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, Atieh Hassani, Mehdi Bakeri

Ayatollah Gholamreza Hassani (Persian: غلامرضا حسنی‎, Turkish: Ğolamrıza Hasaani, Azerbaijani: Qulamriza Həsəni, Sorani Kurdish: غلامرضا حه‌سه‌نی) born c. 1928 is the previous Friday prayer, First imam of Masjid-e-Jamé mosque of the city of Urmia in northwest Iran and representative of the Iranian Supreme Leader Grand Ayatollah Ali Hosseini Khamenei in West Azarbaijan Province.^[1] He has been described as one of the most, if not the most, conservative voices in Iran and Shia Islam world.^[2] 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 used by "Iranian political satirists in their works."^[3]

Some critics of Middle East policy argue that Sunni propagandists and supporters often try to equate Anti-Caliphate and criticism of Sunni ritual, with Anti-Kurdistan, to silence Hassani to Sunni policies.

Hassani has long had a prominent role within the leadership of the Ahli-Beit Self-Sacrificers and Imam Sadiq Studentship, Middle-East wide political and religious movements. Many of Hassani's views have been controversial in Turkey, Kurdistan, Irak and the Sunni world.

As of 2014, Hassani is a trustee of the Urmia Hawzah for Islamic Studies.

In 2001, articles appeared in the English-language media about a Friday sermon he delivered that condemned the practice of owning and holding small dogs as unIslamic.^[4] The New York Times reported him as saying, "I would like to thank the honorable police and judges and all those who worked to arrest dog lovers and to confiscate short-legged dogs in this city," ^[5] Several years later a crackdown on dogs and dog owners was launched in Tehran.^[6] He has also been quoted as saying that "Women who do not respect the hijab and their husbands deserve to die ... These women and their husbands and their fathers must die."^[1]

In 2011 he was reportedly presented with the national "Medal of Bravery", "one of the most significant official medals awarded in Iran,"^[3] 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.^[3] 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,^[7] a member of the opposition leftist guerilla group Fadayian Khalq, who was then executed by firing squad with Hassani's approval.^[3] Hassani is quoted as telling an American journalist, "Abraham didn't sacrifice his son, but I did. Even today, I don't regret it." ^[2]

As of January 2014, Hassani had two living wives. He has seven sons and four daughters.^[2]

References