Masoud Pezeshkian

Masoud Pezeshkian (born 29 September 1954) is an Iranian politician and heart surgeon who has served as the president of Iran since 2024. A member of the reformist faction, he is the oldest person to serve in this position, taking office at the age of 69. Born in Mahabad, West Azerbaijan, to an Iranian Azerbaijani and Iranian Kurdish family, Pezeshkian graduated from the Tabriz University of Medical Sciences with a degree in medicine and served as a doctor for Iranian soldiers in the Iran–Iraq War (1980–1988). Pezeshkian served as governor of Piranshahr and Naghadeh counties and his political career began in 1997 when he joined Mohammad Khatami's administration as Deputy Health Minister. He served as Minister of Health and Medical Education from 2001 to 2005. He was elected to the parliament five times representing the Tabriz, Osku and Azarshahr electoral district from 2008 to 2024, and was First Deputy Speaker from 2016 to 2020. Presenting himself as a moderate, he won the 2024 Iranian presidential election against principlist nominee Saeed Jalili. Pezeshkian began his presidency by continuing support for the "Axis of Resistance" in the Iran–Israel proxy conflict. His administration defended the October 2024 Iranian missile strikes on Israel in response to Israel's assassinations of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh, Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah, and Iranian military officer Abbas Nilforoushan. Pezeshkian hoped to revive the agreement with the United States regarding Iran's nuclear program, in exchange for lifting the international sanctions against it. However, following Israeli strikes in June 2025, tensions escalated into the Twelve-Day War during which an unsuccessful attempt on his life was made. Following the assassination of Ali Khamenei on 28 February 2026, Pezeshkian served ex officio on the Interim Leadership Council. Since then, his civilian government has been heavily sidelined from military and security decisions by the...