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Powerful Iranian shrine endowment gets moderate custodianship

The appointment of a moderate as custodian of the wealthy Astan Quds Razavi could be a boon to the Rouhani administration — but only if the powers of the hard-line Mashhad Friday prayer leader are curtailed.
Iranian pilgrims visit the Shiite Muslim shrine of Imam Reza in the holy city of Mashhad, 900 kms northeast of Tehran, on May 31, 2009. AFP PHOTO/ATTA KENARE (Photo credit should read ATTA KENARE/AFP/Getty Images)

Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei appointed Ahmad Marvi as new custodian of Astan Quds Razavi on March 30. The wealthy endowment manages the shrine of Imam Reza in the holy city of Mashhad. Marvi will replace conservative cleric Ebrahim Raisi, who ran for president in 2017. Raisi was named as the new head of the judiciary last month.

The shrine in Mashhad is a sacred place for Shiite Muslims, attracting millions of visitors from both inside and outside the country every year. Over the centuries, many believers have donated land and their inheritances to the endowment that manages the shrine, a practice that continues to this very day. As such, Astan Quds Razavi is affluent.

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