Mohammad Tavasoli

Mohammad Tavasoli محمد توسلی
Leader of Nationalist-Religious
Incumbent
Assumed office 11 June 2011
Preceded by	Alireza Rajaei
Mayor of Tehran
In office 20 February 1979 – 20 February 1980
Preceded by	Javad Shahrestani
Succeeded by	Reza Zavarei
Personal details
Born	(1938-01-01) 1 January 1938 Tehran, Iran
Nationality	Iranian
Political party	Nationalist-Religious
Other political affiliations	Freedom Movement
Religion	Shia Islam

Mohammad Tavasoli (Persian: محمد توسلی‎‎, born 1 January 1938) is an Iranian democracy activist and politician. He became the leader of the Nationalist-Religious Coalition on 11 June 2011. He is also the director of the political officer of the Freedom Movement.^[1]

Early life

Tavasoli studied at Tehran University in 1956 and was one of the members of Anjoman-e Eslami. He joined the freedom movement soon after it was established. He went to Germany in 1962 to study transportation and traffic. After visiting the United States in 1967, he was returned to Iran and banned from traveling. He was arrested in 1971 because he helped a member of MEK and was jailed for one year. Before the Iranian Revolution, he was one the staff responsible for the advertising campaign rally to welcome Ruhollah Khomeini back to Iran after 15 years.

Political career

After the Iranian Revolution, he was elected as Mayor of Tehran. He was mayor from February 1979 until February 1980. He was jailed with Hashem Sabbaghian in 1983 but was released seven months later. He was jailed again after the 2009-2010 Iranian election protests after participating in a rally in June 2009.^[2] He was elected as the new leader of the Nationalist-Religious Coalition on 11 June 2011 after the previous leader, Ezatollah Sahabi, died on 31 May 2011.

See also

• Intellectual movements in Iran

References

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