Iran's reformist president, elected July 2024 on a platform of Western re-engagement. Since the death of Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei on 28 February 2026, he has sat on the three-member Article 111 Interim Leadership Council alongside Ayatollah Arafi and Chief Justice Mohseni-Ejei.Source: Lowdown

Does Pezeshkian control the IRGC?

No. Under Iran's constitution the president has no command authority over the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, which answers to the Supreme Leader. An IRGC military council led by Ahmad Vahidi has blocked his meeting requests and ministerial appointments since early April 2026.Source: Lowdown

What did Pezeshkian say on 20 April 2026?

Pezeshkian told state media Iran has "deep historical mistrust" of the United States and that Iranians "do not submit to force". He spoke the same day a US destroyer fired into the Iranian vessel Touska, converging with Speaker Ghalibaf and MFA spokesman Baqaei on a hardened rhetorical floor.Source: Iranian state media / Lowdown

Background

Masoud Pezeshkian was Born on 29 September 1954 in Mahabad, West Azerbaijan province, to an Azerbaijani father and Kurdish mother. He trained as a cardiac surgeon and served as Health Minister under Khatami (2001-2005) before representing Tabriz in Parliament across multiple terms. Elected president in July 2024 as a reformist backed by Khatami and Zarif factions, he ran on a platform of Western re-engagement and sanctions relief.

Pezeshkian holds no constitutional command authority over the IRGC, which answers to the Supreme Leader, not the president. When US-Israeli strikes killed Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei on 28 February 2026, Pezeshkian was placed on Iran's three-member Article 111 Interim Leadership Council alongside Ayatollah Alireza Arafi and Chief Justice Gholamhossein Mohseni-Ejei. His televised 8 March order to halt Gulf strikes was ignored by the IRGC within hours. Mojtaba Khamenei was installed as Supreme Leader on 7 March, but with Mojtaba incapacitated by severe injuries, an IRGC military council led by Ahmad Vahidi blocked Pezeshkian's ministerial appointments and refused his meeting requests from early April.

Pezeshkian's wartime role is civilian legitimacy cover for a state the IRGC operationally governs. Foreign Minister Araghchi's Foreign Ministry was reading a US peace text on 7-8 May at the same hour the IRGC fired on US guided-missile destroyers in Hormuz, the command gap made concrete. By late May, Iran's war cabinet (Ghalibaf, Araghchi, Central Bank Governor Hemmati) flew from Doha on 26 May after talks with Qatari counterparts; Qatar's Emir separately phoned Pezeshkian to review de-escalation. Iran's Tasnim News Agency reported a $24 billion frozen-asset structure ($12bn on announcement, $12bn on implementation), though the White House signed no Iran instrument across 89 consecutive days, and Supreme Leader Mojtaba's adviser Shamkhani simultaneously called Trump's nuclear programme demand 'a fantasy'. On 27 May, Trump vetoed Russia and China as custodians for Iran's 440.9 kg of 60%-enriched uranium, eliminating the only third-country storage arrangement and deepening the deadlock Pezeshkian's government cannot resolve without IRGC assent.

On 30 June 2026, Pezeshkian claimed $6 billion of Qatar-held Iranian assets had been returned to Iran; Washington did not confirm the figure.

More questions

Did Pezeshkian order the IRGC to stop firing?

Yes. On 7 March 2026 Pezeshkian delivered a televised address ordering Iranian forces to halt strikes on neighbouring Gulf States. The IRGC ignored the order within hours, launching further missiles and drones at Dubai, Saudi oil facilities, and Bahrain.Source: Lowdown

What are Iran's ceasefire conditions in 2026?

Pezeshkian has set three: recognition of Iran's nuclear and regional rights, reparations for damage from US-Israeli strikes, and binding international guarantees against future military aggression. Ghalibaf and Araghchi have publicly contradicted the framing, and the IRGC has rejected any deal that would dissolve its wartime authority.Source: Lowdown

Does Iran's president control the IRGC?

No. The IRGC answers to the Supreme Leader under Article 110 of Iran's constitution, not to the president. Pezeshkian has no command authority over the IRGC and the military council has refused his meeting requests.

What is Masoud Pezeshkian's role in the Iran conflict?

Pezeshkian is Iran's civilian president and accessible diplomatic interlocutor, but holds no operational command. His government reads peace proposals while the IRGC fires independently.Source: event

Who runs Iran now that Khamenei is dead?

Iran's three-member Article 111 interim council — Pezeshkian (president), Ayatollah Arafi, and Chief Justice Mohseni-Ejei — holds civilian authority. The IRGC operates through an autonomous military council under Ahmad Vahidi.

Does Iran's president Pezeshkian have any control over the military?

No. Under Iran's constitution the IRGC answers to the Supreme Leader, not the president. Pezeshkian issued a televised halt on Gulf strikes on 8 March 2026 that the IRGC ignored within hours. An IRGC council led by Ahmad Vahidi has blocked his ministerial appointments and refused his meeting requests since early April.

What happened at Iran's Doha talks in May 2026?

Iran's war cabinet, comprising Speaker Ghalibaf, Foreign Minister Araghchi, and Central Bank Governor Hemmati, flew back from Doha on 26 May after talks with Qatari counterparts. Qatar's Emir separately called Pezeshkian. Tasnim reported a $24 billion frozen-asset deal structure, but the White House signed no Iran instrument across 89 consecutive days.Source: event

Who is Masoud Pezeshkian and why did Iran elect a reformist?

Pezeshkian is a cardiac surgeon-turned-politician from Tabriz who served as Health Minister under Khatami. He won the July 2024 presidential election as a reformist backed by Khatami and Zarif factions, on a platform of Western re-engagement and sanctions relief — before the 2026 war suspended that agenda.

Why can't Iran's president end the war?

Iran's constitutional architecture places the military under the Supreme Leader, not the elected president. Pezeshkian's Ceasefire order was ignored; the IRGC has blocked his appointments and access to the incapacitated Mojtaba Khamenei. His Foreign Ministry was reading a US peace text on 7-8 May at the same hour the IRGC fired on US destroyers in Hormuz.Source: event

Did Iran receive $6 billion from Qatar in 2026?

Iran's President Pezeshkian claimed on 30 June 2026 that $6 billion of Qatar-held Iranian assets had been returned. Washington did not confirm the figure. This is separate from the $24 billion frozen-asset structure reported by Tasnim in May 2026, which also remained unsigned by the White House.Source: event

Source Material

Iran's Pezeshkian wins presidential election — Reuters Who is Masoud Pezeshkian, Iran's new president? — BBC News Official website of the President of Iran Masoud Pezeshkian — Wikipedia