Ebrahim Raisi: The story of an entire regime in one man

This spanned the political spectrum—from right to left. Khalkhali's relentless executions created a climate of fear as thousands of Mujahideen supporters were crammed into prisons, the most notorious being Evin in northern Tehran.

At the end of the Iran-Iraq war, in July 1988, six days after Khomeini accepted a ceasefire, 7,000 fighters from the Mujahideen-e-Khalq (MEK) launched a massive offensive from Iraq, codenamed Operation Eternal Light.

Their aim was to surprise the exhausted Iranian forces, penetrate deep into Iranian territory, and incite an uprising to overthrow Khomeini. After taking several small towns with ease, the MEK advanced on the city of Kermanshah. It was an ambush.

The Iranians, led by Lt. Gen. Ali Sayad Shirazi, had laid a trap. Knowing that the Iraqi air force would not venture that deep into Iran, Shirazi's troops parachuted in behind them, landing between the MEK convoy and the border, cutting off the convoy's supply lines and support.

Helicopters and jets then unleashed a bombing barrage on the convoy, destroying vehicles, tanks, weapons, and fighters. They then turned around and attacked the remaining Mujahideen to the north. Around 4,500 MEK combatants were killed in just a matter of days.

Raisi's 'death committee'

In the aftermath, Tehran authorities chose to execute the imprisoned MEK supporters, along with members of other leftist parties and forces. Raisi—then a 28-year-old public prosecutor—played a significant role.

Although he did not implement the executions alone, he was a key member of what became known as the 'Death Committee', responsible for the execution of up to 8,000 people, including many women.

Although long forgotten, this episode paved Raisi's path to the heart of government. For years, he was thought destined for the top job. However, Mojtaba Khamenei's chance to become Supreme Leader has grown after his father's death.

The tale of the executions, Raisi's involvement, and his subsequent rise to power highlights how the hard-liners in Iran came to control the political system. Yet the regime has not only suppressed external factions such as the MEK, the Tudeh Communist Party, the leftist Fadaiyan-e-Khalq group, and the Kurdish parties. Conflicts have extended to factions closely tied to Khomeini himself.

Dissent not tolerated

Many prominent figures within these groups faced execution, either by firing squad or hanging. For his part, Mir Hussein Mousavi—a former Iranian prime minister—has been under house arrest for the past 15 years. His last big political action was to challenge the incumbent hard-line President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in elections in 2009. Due to widespread vote-rigging and election fraud, the incumbent was ruled to have won, which sparked huge protests.

Ahmadinejad was the preferred candidate of the conservative movement, who had defeated Ali Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, a regime founder considered moderate compared to Ahmadinejad, in the 2005 elections.

Raisi won the presidency because any other viable candidate was barred from running. This is certainly the case for anyone who may have ideas at odds with Iran's conservative establishment. Recent history warns us to expect more of the same.