Ayatollah Yazdi Passes Away

Ayatollah Mohammad Yazdi, ex-judiciary chief and Islamic jurist, passed away at the age of 89 on Wednesday.
Born in 1931 in Iran’s central city of Isfahan, Ayatollah Yazdi became a leading political figure after the victory of the Islamic Revolution in 1978.
He headed the judiciary from 1989-99, served as chairman of the Society of Qom Theological Seminary’s Teachers and was also a member of the Assembly of Experts until 2015, Tasnim news Agency reported. 
Ayatollah Yazdi was a parliament member for several terms and parliament speaker for one year.
He was a jurist in the Guardians Council watchdog body since 1988, but resigned from the council’s board of Islamic jurists earlier this year due to poor health.
In November, Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyed Ali Khamenei appointed a new member to the Guardians Council’s board, paying tribute to Ayatollah Yazdi for years of “valuable service” to the Islamic Republic in various posts.
President Hassan Rouhani and Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif expressed condolences over the demise of the distinguished cleric in separate messages on Wednesday.