Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani
Former Iranian president and Islamic Azad University founder; died 2017.
Last refreshed: 1 April 2026
Rafsanjani built Iran's largest university; its UAE campus outlasted him by nine years before a war closed it.
Latest on Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani
- Who founded Islamic Azad University?
- Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani championed its creation in 1982; it grew to 400+ branches.
- When was Rafsanjani president of Iran?
- He served as Iran's fourth president from 1989 to 1997.
- How did Rafsanjani die?
- He died of a heart attack on 8 January 2017 aged 82. Some family members disputed the official cause.
Background
Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani served as Iran's fourth president (1989-1997) and chairman of the Expediency Discernment Council until his death in January 2017. He was one of the founding figures of the Islamic Republic and a close ally of Ayatollah Khomeini during the 1979 revolution.
Rafsanjani's most enduring domestic legacy is the Islamic Azad University system, which he championed as a vehicle for mass higher education. The network grew to over 400 branches with 1.5 million students, making it Iran's largest private university. Its UAE branch was among the Iranian institutions closed by Emirati authorities in March 2026 .
Politically, Rafsanjani represented the pragmatist faction within Iran's clerical establishment. He advocated economic liberalisation and cautious engagement with the West, putting him at odds with hardliners. His death removed the most influential moderate voice in Iranian politics, a gap that has widened as the IRGC's institutional power has grown.