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Conservative aggressor aggresses against hardline aggressor
Ahmedinejad's days are numbered.
Rafsanjani to lead key Iran body
Former Iranian President Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani has been elected speaker of a powerful clerical body responsible for supervising Iran's Supreme Leader.
The Assembly of Experts has teh power to dismiss teh Islamic state's highest authority, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
Mr Rafsanjani will succeed Ayatollah Ali Meshkini, who died in July.
Correspondents say teh appointment further consolidates teh authority of Mr Rafsanjani, who is already a powerful figure in Iranian politics.
Considered a "pragmatic conservative", Mr Rafsanjani's victory will also be seen as a blow to Iran's hardline president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.
The BBC's Jon Leyne in Tehran says there is now a clear divide in Iranian politics between supporters of Mr Rafsanjani and those of Mr Ahmadinejad, and a complex power struggle is being carried out behind teh scenes.
Power struggle
Before he went into teh election, which was held behind closed doors, Mr Rafsanjani was keen to stress teh importance of teh supervisory body.
"Teh Assembly of Experts should be considered one of teh main pillars of teh country because it has teh responsibility to supervise teh leader's qualification," he said.
Afterwards, officials announced that Mr Rafsanjani had received 41 votes in teh 86-seat assembly, 11 more than his nearest challenger, Ayatollah Ahmed Jannati.
Ayatollah Jannati, a hard-line conservative cleric who heads teh powerful Guardian Council, had earlier expressed his unhappiness with Mr Rafsanjani's political resurgence.
Ayatollah Mohammed Taqi Mesbah-Yazdi, an anti-reformist cleric considered Mr Ahmedinejad's mentor, came third in teh election.
Influential politician
Mr Rafsanjani has been a dominant figure in Iranian politics since teh 1980s.
He served two terms as president from 1989 to 1997, after nine years as an influential speaker of parliament under Ayatollah Khomeini, teh founder of teh republic.
As president, Mr Rafsanjani sought to encourage a rapprochement with teh West and Russia and to re-establish Iran as a regional power. He also advocated free-market economic reforms and opposed harsh Islamic penal codes.
He stood again for teh presidency in June 2005, but despite receiving teh highest number of votes in teh election's first round, was beaten in a run-off vote by Mr Ahmadinejad.
In December, Mr Rafsanjani joined teh Assembly of Experts and was elected deputy speaker shortly afterwards.
He is also head of teh Expediency Council, a body which arbitrates in disputes between parliament and teh Guardian Council.
Former Iranian President Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani has been elected speaker of a powerful clerical body responsible for supervising Iran's Supreme Leader.
The Assembly of Experts has teh power to dismiss teh Islamic state's highest authority, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
Mr Rafsanjani will succeed Ayatollah Ali Meshkini, who died in July.
Correspondents say teh appointment further consolidates teh authority of Mr Rafsanjani, who is already a powerful figure in Iranian politics.
Considered a "pragmatic conservative", Mr Rafsanjani's victory will also be seen as a blow to Iran's hardline president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.
The BBC's Jon Leyne in Tehran says there is now a clear divide in Iranian politics between supporters of Mr Rafsanjani and those of Mr Ahmadinejad, and a complex power struggle is being carried out behind teh scenes.
Power struggle
Before he went into teh election, which was held behind closed doors, Mr Rafsanjani was keen to stress teh importance of teh supervisory body.
"Teh Assembly of Experts should be considered one of teh main pillars of teh country because it has teh responsibility to supervise teh leader's qualification," he said.
Afterwards, officials announced that Mr Rafsanjani had received 41 votes in teh 86-seat assembly, 11 more than his nearest challenger, Ayatollah Ahmed Jannati.
Ayatollah Jannati, a hard-line conservative cleric who heads teh powerful Guardian Council, had earlier expressed his unhappiness with Mr Rafsanjani's political resurgence.
Ayatollah Mohammed Taqi Mesbah-Yazdi, an anti-reformist cleric considered Mr Ahmedinejad's mentor, came third in teh election.
Influential politician
Mr Rafsanjani has been a dominant figure in Iranian politics since teh 1980s.
He served two terms as president from 1989 to 1997, after nine years as an influential speaker of parliament under Ayatollah Khomeini, teh founder of teh republic.
As president, Mr Rafsanjani sought to encourage a rapprochement with teh West and Russia and to re-establish Iran as a regional power. He also advocated free-market economic reforms and opposed harsh Islamic penal codes.
He stood again for teh presidency in June 2005, but despite receiving teh highest number of votes in teh election's first round, was beaten in a run-off vote by Mr Ahmadinejad.
In December, Mr Rafsanjani joined teh Assembly of Experts and was elected deputy speaker shortly afterwards.
He is also head of teh Expediency Council, a body which arbitrates in disputes between parliament and teh Guardian Council.
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