Iran
2026
- GOVERNMENT
- theocratic republic
- CONSTITUTION
- December 1979, revised in 1989 to extend presidential power
- LEGAL SYSTEM
- based on Sharia law
- LEGISLATIVE SYSTEM
- unicameral, Islamic Consultative Assembly (Majles-e-Shura-ye-Eslami)
- JUDICIAL SYSTEM
- Supreme Court
RELIGIONS
Shia majority; 10% Sunni; Christian, Jewish, Bahá'í, and Zoroastrian minorities
From the country
- NOVEMBER 22, 2002IranDEATH PENALTY
Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said a...
Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said a wave of student protests was the work of pro-US enemies of the Islamic state and warned they would be suppressed if necessary
- NOVEMBER 21, 2002IranDEATH PENALTY
Iranian President Mohammad Khatami's reformist allies...
Iranian President Mohammad Khatami's reformist allies said they could push for a rare referendum if two bills challenging the hardliners' grip on power were vetoed by conservatives
- NOVEMBER 17, 2002IranDEATH PENALTY
Students claimed a victory for freedom of speech as...
Students claimed a victory for freedom of speech as Iran's supreme leader ordered a review of the death sentence against dissident academic Hashem Aghajari
- NOVEMBER 16, 2002IranDEATH PENALTY
An Iranian man convicted of murder and robbery was...
An Iranian man convicted of murder and robbery was hanged in a prison near the capital Tehran, the Seday-e-Edalat newspaper reported
- NOVEMBER 15, 2002IranDEATH PENALTY
Hundreds of hardline demonstrators in Tehran called...
Hundreds of hardline demonstrators in Tehran called for the execution of Hashem Aghajari, a popular academic and ally of President Mohammad Khatami sentenced to death for blasphemy
- NOVEMBER 14, 2002IranDEATH PENALTY
The central council of the Islamic Students Association...
The central council of the Islamic Students Association of Shahid Saduqi's Medical Science University in Yazd sent an open letter to Ayatollah Hashemi-Shahrudi, calling on him to resign from his post as head of the Judiciary, following the death sentence
- NOVEMBER 13, 2002IranDEATH PENALTY
Embattled President Mohammad Khatami broke his silence...
Embattled President Mohammad Khatami broke his silence over the sentencing to death for blasphemy of Hashem Aghajari, a prominent academic and close ally
- NOVEMBER 13, 2002IranDEATH PENALTY
State prosecutor-general Ayatollah Abdolnabi Namazi...
State prosecutor-general Ayatollah Abdolnabi Namazi said that the dossier of Hashem Aghjari should go through its legal procedure and that everyone should accept the final verdict of the law
- NOVEMBER 13, 2002IranDEATH PENALTY
Hashem Aghajari refused to appeal his sentence in a...
Hashem Aghajari refused to appeal his sentence in a defiant challenge to the Islamic republic's hardline judiciary, his lawyer said
- NOVEMBER 13, 2002IranDEATH PENALTY
Around 2,500 students gathered at a Tehran university...
Around 2,500 students gathered at a Tehran university burst into prolonged applause when a speaker announced Hashem Aghajari's decision not to appeal his death sentence for blashpemy
- NOVEMBER 12, 2002IranDEATH PENALTY
An Iranian man found guilty of kidnapping and rape...
An Iranian man found guilty of kidnapping and rape was publicly hanged in the central holy city of Qom, the Abrar newspaper reported
- NOVEMBER 11, 2002IranDEATH PENALTY
Iran's supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, issued...
Iran's supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, issued a veiled warning he might have to call on "the forces of the people" to step in if the main pillars of Iran's power structure were unable to solve major problems, the BBC reported