Ruhollah Khomeini

• 1. Childhood In Khomeyn

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  Ruhollah Musavi Khomeini was born on the 17th of May 1900 in the small town of Khomeyn. His father Mustafa Musawi died when Ruhollah was only two years old. Agha Khanum raised him alongside his aunt Sahebeth after the murder. He began studying the Quran and Arabic at a very young age with help from relatives. Ja'far, his mother's cousin, assisted in his early religious education. Morteza Pasandideh, his elder half-brother, also taught him traditional subjects. The family had migrated from Nishapur to Awadh before settling in Iran. Ahmad Hindi, his paternal grandfather, left Lucknow for Iraq in 1830 but returned to settle in Khomein by 1834.

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• 2. Opposition To The Shah

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  In January 1963 the Shah announced the White Revolution reform program. Khomeini viewed these changes as an attack on Islam. He summoned senior Marja's of Qom to decree a boycott of the referendum. On the 22nd of January 1963 he issued a declaration denouncing both the Shah and his plan. Two days later the Shah sent an armored column to Qom to deliver a speech attacking the ulama class. On the afternoon of Ashura on the 3rd of June 1963 Khomeini delivered a speech at Feyziyeh madrasah. He compared the Shah to Caliph Yazid I who is seen as a tyrant by Shias. Three days after this public denunciation he was detained in Qom and transferred to Tehran. Major riots followed throughout Iran with some 400 deaths recorded during the Movement of 15 Khordad.

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• 3. Exile And Revolutionary Theory

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  Khomeini spent more than 14 years in exile mostly in Najaf Iraq. He initially went to Turkey on the 4th of November 1964 staying in Bursa. In October 1965 he moved to Najaf where he remained until 1978. While there he gave lectures that became the book Islamic Government. This text outlined Velayat-e Faqih or Guardianship of the Jurist. The principle stated laws should come only from Shariah. It argued rulers must be faqih who surpass all others in knowledge of Islamic law. By the late 1960s he was a marja-e taqlid for hundreds of thousands of Shia followers. Cassette copies of his lectures denouncing the Shah circulated widely in Iranian markets. One source claimed over 100,000 cassettes existed before the revolution.

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• 4. Return And Consolidation Of Power

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  On the 2nd of February 1979 Khomeini returned to Iran aboard an Air France flight. A crowd reported to be five million people welcomed him back. When asked how he felt about returning he answered Hichi meaning Nothing. On the 11th of February 1979 he appointed Mehdi Bazargan as interim prime minister. He declared disobedience against Bazargan was blasphemy and revolt against God. A referendum on the 30th and the 31st of March 1979 passed with 98% voting for an Islamic Republic. Khomeini became Supreme Leader officially in December 1979. He established Islamic Revolutionary courts and replaced secular laws with Islamic ones. The Islamic Republic Party formed through his Motjaheds aimed to tear down secular opposition. Several newspapers were closed and protesters attacked. Opposition groups like the National Democratic Front were banned by early 1980.

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• 5. War And Foreign Policy

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  Iraq launched a full-scale invasion of Iran in September 1980 beginning the Iran-Iraq War. Saddam Hussein sought to occupy Khuzestan province which was oil-rich. By early 1982 Iran had regained almost all lost territory despite poison gas use. Khomeini refused truce offers demanding reparations and toppling Saddam Hussein. Human wave attacks included child soldiers walking into certain death. Promises stated martyrs would go directly to paradise. Two million educated citizens left the country by March 1984. Casualties ranged from 450,000 to 950,000 Iranians costing US$300 billion. In July 1988 he accepted a UN-mediated truce calling it drinking the cup of poison. He insisted extending the war was not a mistake but fulfilling religious duty. The United States secretly smuggled arms to Iran during the conflict despite public anti-Western rhetoric.

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• 6. Social Control And Human Rights

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  Sharia law introduced strict dress codes for men and women after his return. Women required to cover hair while men could not wear shorts. Alcohol Western movies and mixed swimming were banned entirely. Music broadcasting stopped except martial or religious tunes for ten years. The minimum marriage age dropped to 15 for boys and 13 for girls. Polygamy remained legal while adultery became a high criminal offense. Between February and March 1979 sixteen Iranians executed for sexual violations. Over 100 drug addicts prostitutes homosexuals rapists and adulterers died in campaigns to cleanse society. Homosexuals declared parasites spreading wickedness requiring extermination. Transgender surgery legalized as cure for diagnosed transsexuals starting mid-1980s. Economic policies led to poverty rising nearly 45% within six years. Two to four million professionals emigrated fleeing instability and unemployment.

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• 7. Death And Succession

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  Khomeini suffered five heart attacks over ten days before dying on the 3rd of June 1989. At least 10 mourners trampled to death while more than 400 badly hurt during funeral crowds. Fire trucks sprayed water on thousands gathered in summer heat. His coffin displayed in north Tehran allowed hundreds of thousands to view it. Millions blocked streets preventing normal procession so authorities flew body by helicopter. A second funeral held under tighter security used steel casket per Islamic tradition. Ali Khamenei elected Supreme Leader on the 4th of June 1989 after constitution amended removing Marja requirement. Grand Ayatollah Montazeri ousted from succession role in March 1989 following complaints about prisons. Montazeri stated prisons were worse than those of Shah and SAVAK. Khamenei lacked scholarly credentials but had revolutionary ones suitable for leadership.

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