Abbas Sheibani

Abbas Sheibani was a physician and political figure who traversed the full arc of post-revolution Iranian politics, from nationalist-religious activism to the conservative establishment. A founding member of the Freedom Movement of Iran alongside Mehdi Bazargan, Mahmoud Taleghani, and Yadollah Sahabi in 1961, he had previously been active in the National Front. He spent 13 years in the Shah's prisons across nine separate sentences for political activism.

After the Iranian Revolution, Sheibani broke with the Freedom Movement and joined the Islamic Republican Party, aligning with the clerical establishment. He served as a member of the Islamic Revolutionary Council and was elected to the Assembly of Experts for the Constitution from Tehran Province in 1979. He served as Minister of Agriculture from November 1979 to August 1980.

Sheibani ran for president twice — finishing second to Mohammad-Ali Rajai in July 1981, and serving as the sole approved rival to Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani in the 1989 election. He served five terms in the Islamic Consultative Assembly representing Tehran (1984–2000) and later served three terms on the Tehran City Council. He also served as president of the University of Tehran (1983–1984). Ali Khamenei personally led funeral prayers at his death in December 2022, calling him a 'long-time friend and sincere believer.'