Supreme Leader, IRGC, Guardian Council or Army - Who really runs Iran? Islamic Republic's complex web of power, explained

Israel's attack on Iran, targeting its top military and government officials, nuclear facilities and scientists on Friday (June 13) has placed the global focus back on the Shia Islamic Republic. With several top military and political leaders killed, one wonders who really runs the show in Iran. In the unique theocratic republic, the power is centred around a handful of people, mostly those linked to the Islamic Revolution of 1978-79. The military is also led by those with links to the Islamic Revolution. The governance system is a blend of Islamic theocracy, with a limited democracy overseen by the clerics.

Iran's governance structure has its base in Islamic Revolution leader Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini’s doctrine of velayat-e faqih or Guardianship of the Islamic Jurist. This system gives the ultimate authority to clerics, led by the Supreme Leader.

The complex web of power has both elected and unelected officials running the country, with critics saying that democracy is a sham, as the political leadership including the president is screened by various clerical bodies.

Here is the Islamic Republic of Iran's government, explained:

Supreme Leader

The Iranian Supreme Leader or ‘Rahbar’ is the head of state, and the highest authority of both politics and religion. It's a role with near absolute power over all branches of government, military, judiciary, and state media. Supreme leaders are appointed for life by the Assembly of Experts, the only body to whom he is accountable.

Office of the Supreme Leader supervises the executive, legislative, and judicial branches of government.

Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the current supreme leader, is the final deciding authority on foreign policy, economy and security. Khamenei is also the commander-in-chief of the armed forces, including the IRGC or the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and its Basij militia.

The supreme leader appoints the heads of the judiciary, state media, military, and half of the Guardian Council members.

He also controls economic entities like charitable trusts worth billions of dollars, making his office financially independent.

The supreme leader supervises the Guardian Council, which vets electoral candidates and legislation. He issues fatwas or decrees, can veto legislations, declare war or peace, and pardon convicts.

The supreme leader has a netwok of delegates who enforce his will across the government.

Khamenei is only the second supreme leader of Iran, having succeeded Khomeini in 1989. He can be in office till death.

Iranian president

The President is Iran's head of government and the highest elected official, but is subordinate to the Supreme Leader, who must approve his appointment and can dismiss him.

Masoud Pezeshkian is the current president of Iran. The president , though elected by people for a four-year-term, has only limited powers. The president is responsible for domestic policy, planning the econmy, and some aspects of foreign policy. The president can hold two consecutive terms.

Assembly of Experts

The Assembly of Experts is an 88-member group of Islamic jurists elected by popular vote every eight years. The assembly selects and supervises the supreme leader. Theoretically, it can also dismiss the supreme leader, but such a thing has never happened.

Candiates for the Assembly of Experts are selected by the Guardian Council. Currently, Ayatollah Ahmad Jannati chairs the Assembly of Experts, whose roles include monitoring the Supreme Leader's performance and choosing his successor. It's largely a ceremonial group of regime loyalists with not much actual power.

Guardian Council

The Guardian Council is yet another Islamic jurist body whose main role is the selection and vetting of candidates for elections. The 12-member body is currently chaired by Ayatollah Ahmad Jannati, who also leads the Assembly of Experts.

The Guardian Council has veto power over laws, and can disqualify election candidates, which it had done in the past to keep out reformists from contesting elections.

The supreme leader appoints half of the Guardian Council, while the six other lawyers are nominated by the judiciary and approved by parliament.

The council screens candidates for key posts like the president, legislature, and Assembly of Experts, and has the power to shape election outcomes.

The Guardian Council is the interpreter of the constitution. It has traditionally been dominated by hardliners.

Expediency Council

The Expediency Council is yet another layer of authority in the Iranian system. Its main roles are the resolution of disputes between the Guardian Council and parliament.

It advises the supreme leader on policy.

Expediency Council members are appointed by the supreme leader for five-year terms.

Currently chaired by Ayatollah Amoli Larijani, the Expediency Council mediates legislative disagreements. In practice, it has sided with the Guardian Council in such matters.

Islamic Consultative Assembly or Majlis, the Iranian parliament

The Majlis, Iran’s unicameral parliament, has 290 members who are elected by the people every four years. While Majlis, like any other parliament, drafts legislation and approves the budget, its powers are limited by a variety of actors like the Supreme Leader, the Guardian Council and the Expediency Council.

Iranian Judiciary

Iran has a judiciary which is not seen as independent, as it is controlled by the Supreme Leader. The chief justice is appointed by the supreme leader. The judiciary's main role is to enforce Islamic law and oversee courts.

In practice, critics of the judiciary see it as an instrument of political repression. It also operates a Special Clerical Court, which prosecutes dissident clerics and reports directly to the supreme leader.

The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps or IRGC

While Iran does have a regular military known as Artesh, much of the defence power is with IRGC, a paramilitary that rose out of the Islamic Revolution. IRGC is tasked with managing internal security through the powerful Basij militia and intelligence units, and expanding Iran's regional influence. As its name implies, it is supposed to protect the principles of the Islamic Revolution.

IRGC answers directly to the supreme leader and controls significant economic assets. Its Quds Force, responsible for external operations, is accused of arming and training anti-Israel militia groups like Hamas, Hezbollah and Houthis.

Its current Commander-in-Chief, Maj Gen Hossein Salami, was killed in Friday's Israeli attack.
Chief of General Staff Maj Gen Mohammad Hossein Bagheri, who oversees the coordination of IRGC and the regular army, was also killed.

IRGC is thought to be controlling up to 30 per cent of Iran's economy, including its infrastructure and energy sectors. Significantly, IRGC also oversees the nuclear and missile programmes of Iran.
IRGC is also deployed to suppress dissent, and protests like the 2022 anti-veil movement after the death of Mahsa Amini.

Supreme National Security Council

This is the body that coordinates defence and foreign policy of Iran. The Security Council is chaired by the president but dominated by the Supreme Leader’s appointees.

The security council formulates national security and foreign policy, which have to be approved by the supreme leader.

Members of the council include the IRGC commander, foreign minister, and the intelligence minister.