Yousef Saanei
Yousef Saanei | |
|---|---|
يوسف صانعى | |
The late Grand Ayatollah Yousef Saanei in his office. | |
| Title | Grand Ayatollah |
| Personal life | |
| Born | 16 October 1937 Isfahan, Iran |
| Died | 12 September 2020 (aged 82) Qom, Iran |
| Nationality | Iranian |
| Member of the Assembly of Experts | |
| In office 10 December 1982 – 8 October 1990 | |
| Preceded by | Office Began |
| Succeeded by | Ahmad Khomeini |
| Constituency | Tehran Province |
| Prosecutor-General of Iran | |
| In office 1983–1985 | |
| Appointed by | Ruhollah Khomeini |
| Preceded by | Mohammad-Mehdi Rabbani Amlashi |
| Succeeded by | Mohammad Mousavi Khoeiniha |
| Political party | Islamic Republican Party (1980s) |
| Main interest(s) | Politics, Jurisprudence, Marja'yah and Theology |
| Relations | Hassan Sane'i (brother) |
| Religious life | |
| Religion | Islam |
| Jurisprudence | Twelver Shia |
| Creed | Usuli |
| Website | Official website |
Yousef Saanei (Persian: يوسف صانعى; 16 October 1937 – 12 September 2020) was an Iranian Twelver Shi'a Marja' and politician, a member of the Islamic Republic of Iran's powerful Guardian Council from 1980 to 1983 and also Attorney-General of Iran from 1983 to 1985.
Whether he was a Marja' (Grand Ayatollah) was disputed. His calls for radical political reform in Iran were very controversial and in 2010 the government-sponsored "Qom Theological Lecturers Association" (Jame-e-Modarressin) declared him no longer qualified for emulation as a Grand Ayatollah. However, many of his followers continued to consider him their Marja, and this was acknowledged by several influential Maraji such as Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, Naser Makarem Shirazi, Abdul-Karim Mousavi Ardebili, and Hossein Noori Hamedani.