It is believed that the policy pursued by Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has thrown Iranian society back many years. During his reign, women's rights and democratic freedoms were significantly curtailed. The President sought to rid society of those whom he considered objectionable. Under Ahmadinejad, many prominent figures in science and culture were deprived of the opportunity to participate in the public life of the country.
From the biography of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad
The future political leader of Iran was born on October 28, 1956 in the province of Semnan. Ahmadinejad's ancestors worked on carpet dyeing. Mahmud's father was a simple blacksmith. The family lived in poverty.
Mahmoud received a solid education: in 1976 he became a student at a prestigious university - Tehran University of Science and Technology. His diploma qualification is a transport engineer. After graduating from the university, Ahmadinejad entered graduate school, in 1997 he defended his doctoral dissertation.
First steps in your career
Even in his student years, Ahmadinejad was an active participant in the anti-Shah youth movement. Together with his comrades, he published a religious magazine. When the Shah's regime fell, Mahmoud joined an Islamist organization that advocated ultra-conservative views and advocated for the strengthening of the unity of theological schools and universities.
There is evidence that in 1979 Ahmadinejad took part in an action to seize US Embassy employees as hostages. According to other sources, Makhmud originally planned to seize the Soviet Union's embassy, but his comrades rejected this idea.
In the early 1980s, Ahmadinejad, as part of a special unit, volunteered for the Iran-Iraq war. What exactly he did during the hostilities is unknown. However, there is information that special operations with his participation were carried out in areas populated mainly by Kurds. Opposition representatives have repeatedly assured the public that torture and executions of those who were called dissidents are on Mahmud's conscience.
Ahmadinejad's political career
After leaving the army, Mahmoud thought about a career as a politician. At various times he was at the head of the administration of a number of cities in the province of West Azerbaijan. Subsequently, he was an adviser to the governor of the Kurdistan province. In the mid-90s, Mahmoud served as an advisor to the minister of culture and education of his country. Then he taught at his own university.
In 2003, Ahmadinejad becomes mayor of Tehran. Two years later, he won the presidential election. In June 2009, he once again won the presidential race. Mahmud's second ascent to the highest post in the state was accompanied by popular unrest: the opposition considered that the election results were rigged.
In 2012, Ahmadinejad's supporters were defeated in the Iranian parliamentary elections.
Ahmadinejad could no longer take part in the 2013 elections - he had already served two terms as the country's president. Hassan Rouhani became his successor at the high government post.
According to experts, Ahmadinejad's coming to power meant stopping social progress and turning to the path of strict adherence to the Koran. Under this ruler, separate elevators for women and men were introduced, many Western trade enterprises were closed, certain types of outdoor advertising that preached the values of the West were prohibited.
